The relationship between phase angle, nutritional status and blood biochemical parameters in hemodialysis patients: an example study in Edirne city center

Aims: Phase angle (PA) is recommended as a noninvasive and objective index to make an assessment of hemodialysis patients’ nutritional conditions. This study aimed to investigate the relationship of PA with nutritional status and blood biochemical parameters in patients on hemodialysis. Methods: A descriptive and cross-sectional research design was employed. The study was conducted with 100 hemodialysis patients (mean±SD: 62.79±11.73 years) between February and July 2024. Data collection tools included a questionnaire about patients’ descriptive characteristics, a 24-hour food record form, the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM) criteria, the Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool (MUST), the 7-point Subjective Global Assessment (7p-SGA) scale, and the Nutritional Risk Screening-2002 (NRS-2002) scale. Results: Patients with or at risk of malnutrition, identified using GLIM, MUST, and 7p-SGA criteria, had significantly lower mean PA, than patients without malnutrition risk (p=0.001, p=0.008, p=0.004, respectively). According to NRS-2002 criteria, participants who were at risk of malnutrition and needed starting a nutrition plan had significantly lower mean PA than those requiring weekly NRS-2002 assessments (p=0.017). The association of PA with lean body-mass (r=0.257, p=0.010), muscle mass (r=0.264, p=0.008), TSF thickness (r=0.259, p=0.009) and albumin (r=0.313, p=0.002) was positive, weak or very weak, and statistically meaningful. Conclusion: Hemodialysis patients with or at risk of malnutrition had lower PA values according to various assessment tools. This suggests that PA may function as a possible indicator for identifying nutritional deficiencies in hemodialysis patients without delay.