The relationship between measures of nutritional status and masticatory function in untreated patients with head and neck cancer.
OBJECTIVE
Nearly 40% of newly diagnosed patients with head and neck cancer are malnourished before treatment begins with many researchers ascribing the malnutrition to a paucity of teeth. We attempted to determine if inadequate numbers of occluding pairs of teeth, rather than mere numbers of teeth, in newly hospitalized, untreated head and neck cancer patients correlates with nutritional status parameters used to identify those at heightened risk for malnutrition-related complications.


METHODS
Patients and cancer-free, matched controls were evaluated for malnutrition (body mass index < or = 20 [weight (kg)/height (m2)]), serum albumin < or = 2.7 g/dL, hemoglobin < or = 11.9 g/dL, and total lymphocyte count < or = 1,449/muL), and inadequate numbers of occluding pairs of teeth variably defined as less than 5 "posterior pairs" of occluding teeth or less than 6 or 7 "total pairs" of occluding teeth.


RESULTS
Head and neck cancer patients had significantly lower body mass index (P = .005) and total lymphocyte count (P = .019) than controls, but there were no significant correlations between the nutritional and dental variables in either group.


CONCLUSIONS
Untreated head and neck cancer patients frequently have nutritional status parameters indicating heightened risk for malnutrition-related complications but inadequate masticatory function is not a causative factor.
Friedlander
Arthur H
AH
Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, CA 90073, USA. arthur.friedlander@med.va.gov
Tajima
Tracey
T
Kawakami
Kyle T
KT
Wang
Marilene B
MB
Tomlinson
James
J
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000848:Anodontia / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000209:etiology; D015992:Body Mass Index; D004812:Epidemiologic Methods; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000150:complications*; D006454:Hemoglobins / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D044342:Malnutrition / Q000209:etiology; D008409:Mastication / Q000502:physiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009752:Nutritional Status; D011859:Radiography; D012709:Serum Albumin / Q000032:analysis
D006454:Hemoglobins; D012709:Serum Albumin