title: Undernutrition in elective colorectal surgery. Implications for post operative morbidity.
abstract: The nutritional status of 65 patients undergoing elective colorectal surgery was assessed using 5 conventional nutritional indices, percentage ideal weight, mid arm muscle circumference, triceps skin fold thickness, serum albumin and serum total iron binding capacity. Only 9 patients had values for all five indices which are taken to represent normal nutritional status. This survey suggests that many patients undergoing elective colorectal surgery in this country have subnormal values of the indices commonly used for nutritional assessment but only severe depression of serum albumin however appears to adversely affect the outcome of surgery.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Northern General Hospital, Sheffield, U.K.
authors.forename: C D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Griffith
authors.forename: A H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: McLean Ross
authors.forename: R G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Clark