title: Methods Employed to Assess Weight Loss in Older Adults by Means of Electronic Medical Records: A Systematic Review.
abstract: Electronic medical records (EMRs) can be used to identify and categorize weight loss in older adults, but research has not scrutinized methods for doing so. Through a modified PRISMA protocol, we systematically reviewed published methods for quantifying weight change from EMRs. Articles (all available through July 2016) were identified through PubMed and SCOPUS searches, screened, and evaluated. We abstracted relevant data and tabulated the methods to assess weight change. The 13 selected articles showed little consistency in the approach to key methodological issues: 1) time ranges assessed; 2) removal of spurious values; 3) metrics to quantify weight change; 4) number of measures needed to estimate change; 5) threshold for significant weight change; and 6) relation to ideal weight. There was essentially no consensus around how to identify and categorize weight loss. Further investigation is needed to establish scientifically validated and clinically useful algorithms, accounting for the six issues above.
authors.affiliation: a Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center , Veterans Affairs Puget Sound Health Care Center , Seattle , Washington , USA.
authors.forename: Sunny
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: a Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center , Veterans Affairs Puget Sound Health Care Center , Seattle , Washington , USA.|b Division of Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine, Department of Medicine , University of Washington School of Medicine , Seattle , Washington , USA.
authors.forename: William A
authors.initials: WA
authors.lastname: Banks
authors.affiliation: d Health Services Research and Development , Puget Sound VA Medical Center , Seattle , Washington , USA.|e Department of Medicine , University of Washington School of Medicine , Seattle , Washington , USA.
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Silverman
authors.affiliation: f Geriatric Medicine, Division of General Medical Disciplines , Stanford University School of Medicine , Stanford , California , USA.
authors.forename: Meera
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sheffrin
authors.affiliation: a Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center , Veterans Affairs Puget Sound Health Care Center , Seattle , Washington , USA.|c Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences , University of Washington School of Medicine , Seattle , Washington , USA.
authors.forename: Stephen M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Thielke
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D015992:Body Mass Index; D057286:Electronic Health Records; D006801:Humans; D012107:Research Design; D015431:Weight Loss
keywords: EMR; Electrical medical records; weight loss