Nutritional assessment in intensive care and post intensive care patients: a scoping review protocol

Introduction: Early and comprehensive assessment of nutritional status, including muscle status, body composition and detecting malnutrition and sarcopenia, is a key component of nutritional care in the intensive care unit and during post intensive care phase. There is currently no consensus regarding a standardized, profession-specific, and time-sensitive approach to nutritional assessment in this population. The aim of this scoping review is to map existing nutritional assessment tools for ICU and post-ICU patients, including the available evidence, recommended timing, and healthcare professionals responsible for performing the assessment. Methodology: This scoping review will be conducted in accordance with the PRISMA-ScR Checklist. A literature search will be performed in Pubmed, Embase and Scopus from October to December 2026, using predefined search strings. In addition international guidelines on ICU nutrition will be searched and a citation search will be conducted. Studies will be eligible if they meet predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Two reviewers will independently screen records, assess full texts, and extract data using Covidence and a standardized extraction form. Findings will be synthesized narratively. The scoping review protocol will be registered on Zenodo before starting the research. Ethics and dissemination: Ethical approval will not be required, as this review will use only data from previously published studies and will not involve the collection of primary data from patients or human participants.