title: Progress in the development of a nutritional risk index.
abstract: The development of a 16-item nutritional risk index (NRI) is chronicled from its inception through its application in three studies designed to assess its reliability and validity. Study I involved a survey of 401 community-dwelling elderly in St. Louis, Missouri who were interviewed at baseline, 4-5 mo later, and 1 yr later. Study II involved a cross-sectional survey of 377 male outpatients attending two clinics at the St. Louis Veterans Administration Medical Center. Study III involved a cross-sectional survey of 424 community-dwelling elderly in Houston, Texas. Internal consistency reliability coefficients ranged between 0.47 and 0.60, and test-retest reliability coefficients ranged between 0.65 and 0.71. Validity was established by using the NRI to predict the use of health services, as well as by correlating it with a variety of anthropometric, laboratory, and clinical markers of nutritional status. The utility of the NRI for future applications is discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Indiana University, Indianapolis.
authors.forename: F D
authors.initials: FD
authors.lastname: Wolinsky
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Coe
authors.forename: W A
authors.initials: WA
authors.lastname: McIntosh
authors.forename: K S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Kubena
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Prendergast
authors.forename: M N
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Chavez
authors.forename: D K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Romeis
authors.forename: W A
authors.initials: WA
authors.lastname: Landmann
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000886:Anthropometry; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008875:Middle Aged; D008923:Missouri; D009747:Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D009752:Nutritional Status; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012307:Risk Factors