Can We Use Extracellular Water to Total Body Water Ratio as a Predictor of the Nutritional Status of Patients with Colorectal Cancer at the Time of Diagnosis? †
by
Mirna Šporčić
1, 
Irena Martinis
1,
Jelena Pugelnik
1,
Toni Kolak
2,
Josip Baković
2,
Božica Jerak
3,‡ and
Martina Bituh
3,* 1
Nutrition Department, University Hospital Dubrava, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
2
Department of Surgery, University Hospital Dubrava, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
3
Department of Food Quality Control, Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, University of Zagreb, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
Presented at the 14th European Nutrition Conference FENS 2023, Belgrade, Serbia, 14–17 November 2023.
‡
Graduated Student.
Proceedings 2023, 91(1), 298; https://doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2023091298
Published: 7 February 2024
(This article belongs to the Proceedings of The 14th European Nutrition Conference FENS 2023)
Abstract
:Background and objectives: Early nutritional assessments have the potential to improve prognostic outcomes of patients with colorectal cancer (CRC). Among all parameters measured by bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), extracellular water to total body water ratio (ECW/TBW) is a known prognostic factor for various diseases. The objective was to investigate the relationship between the ECW/TBW ratio and the nutritional status of CRC patients at the time of diagnosis. Methods: In this retrospective study, information about the patients’ demographic characteristics and nutritional status, including anthropometric measurements (determined by Tanita, MC-780 MA) and biochemical parameters at the time of diagnosis, were obtained from 104 patient records. We divided patients into two groups according to median ECW/TBW ratio (45.25%) and compared the differences between groups using a Chi-square or Mann-Whitney U test. A Spearman correlation was used to determine the correlation between the ECW/TBW ratio and all observed parameters. Results: Groups with a lower ECW/TBW ratio were younger (67 [62.25–72] vs. 74 [65–79] (p < 0.05)), had higher body weight (kg) (86 ± 12 vs. 78 ± 13 (p < 0.001)), body mass index (kg/m2) (28.6 ± 3.6 vs. 26.9 ± 4.6 (p < 0.05)), phase angle (⁰PhA) (5.7 ± 0.7 vs. 4.6 ± 0.7 (p < 0.001)), sarcopenia index (⁰SMI) (8.8 ± 1.2 vs. 7.5 ± 0.7 (p < 0.001)), albumin (g/L) (43 ± 3 vs. 41 ± 3 (p < 0.001)) and hemoglobin (g/L) (137.50 ± 19.34 vs. 131.00 ± 19.72 (p < 0.05)) compared to groups with a higher ECW/TBW ratio. A lower ECW/TBW ratio was predominant in males (75.4%) and among overweight patients (p < 0.05). A positive correlation was found between ECW/TBW and age (r = 0.402, p < 0.001), while negative correlations were observed between ECW/TBW and body weight (r = −0.408, p < 0.001), SMI (r = −0.581, p < 0.001), serum albumin (r = −0.390, p < 0.001), serum hemoglobin (r = −0.295, p < 0.001) and PhA (r = −0.703, p < 0.001). Discussion: Analysis indicates that groups with a lower ECW/TBW ratio had overall better nutritional status. Several studies state that abnormal fluid distribution affects prognosis in people with cancer. In our study, patients with a higher ECW/TBW ratio had a much worse degree of cell damage. An ECW/TBW ratio may be useful as an indicator of nutritional status in CRC at the time of diagnosis.
Author Contributions
Conceptualization, I.M. and M.B.; methodology, I.M., M.B. and M.Š.; formal analysis, M.Š., B.J. and M.B.; investigation, T.K. and J.B.; resources, J.P., T.K. and J.B.; data curation, M.Š. and I.M.; writing—original draft preparation, M.Š.; writing—review and editing, I.M and M.B.; visualization, M.B.; supervision, M.B. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding
This research received no external funding.
Institutional Review Board Statement
The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. Ethical review and approval were waived for this study because this study did not involve a prospective evaluation nor did involve any medical examination out of ordinary.
Informed Consent Statement
Not applicable.
Data Availability Statement
The data are available upon request from M.Š.
Conflicts of Interest
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
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MDPI and ACS Style
Šporčić, M.; Martinis, I.; Pugelnik, J.; Kolak, T.; Baković, J.; Jerak, B.; Bituh, M. Can We Use Extracellular Water to Total Body Water Ratio as a Predictor of the Nutritional Status of Patients with Colorectal Cancer at the Time of Diagnosis? Proceedings 2023, 91, 298. https://doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2023091298
AMA Style
Šporčić M, Martinis I, Pugelnik J, Kolak T, Baković J, Jerak B, Bituh M. Can We Use Extracellular Water to Total Body Water Ratio as a Predictor of the Nutritional Status of Patients with Colorectal Cancer at the Time of Diagnosis? Proceedings. 2023; 91(1):298. https://doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2023091298
Chicago/Turabian StyleŠporčić, Mirna, Irena Martinis, Jelena Pugelnik, Toni Kolak, Josip Baković, Božica Jerak, and Martina Bituh. 2023. "Can We Use Extracellular Water to Total Body Water Ratio as a Predictor of the Nutritional Status of Patients with Colorectal Cancer at the Time of Diagnosis?" Proceedings 91, no. 1: 298. https://doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2023091298
