Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40159670›Full record

ArticleJournal of human nutrition and dietetics : the official journal of the British Dietetic Association2025

Current Practices of Irish Dietitians Assessing and Monitoring Muscle Strength, Mass and Function: A Cross-Sectional Survey.

Emily Morrin, Samuel Donnelly, Aideen McGuinness, Katherine L Ford, Anne Griffin

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of human nutrition and dietetics : the official journal of the British Dietetic Association, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Emily MorrinHuman Nutrition & Dietetics, School of Allied Health, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland.
Samuel DonnellyHuman Nutrition & Dietetics, School of Allied Health, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland.
Aideen McGuinnessWexford Integrated Care for Older Persons, Health Service Executive, Enniscorthy, Wexford, Ireland.
Katherine L FordDepartment of Kinesiology & Health Sciences, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Canada.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8620-9360
Anne GriffinHuman Nutrition & Dietetics, School of Allied Health, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1581-2998

Funding

The authors received no specific funding for this work.
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND

aimsMeasuring muscle mass, strength, and function is vital in nutritional assessment, offering valuable insights into overall health, including nutritional adequacy, metabolic function and physical well-being. Nonetheless, the use of these measures for nutritional assessment and monitoring in dietetic practice is not widely implemented, and gaps in care remain. This study aimed to explore Irish dietitians' current nutritional assessment practices related to muscle health.

methodsA cross-sectional descriptive 29-item online survey was adapted and distributed via link in email and social media to state-registered dietitians (N = 1340) in Ireland between 21 September 2023 and 26 October 2023. Data were analysed descriptively.

resultsThe majority of dietitians (84/85) agreed that musculature was important in the assessment of nutritional status, with 80% (n = 56/70) reporting the integration of at least one assessment of muscle health into their clinical practice. Handgrip strength (HGS) was viewed as the most important (95.7%; n = 67/70), frequently applied (64.3%; n = 45/70) and most useful for monitoring muscle health (77.1%; n = 54/70). Regardless, the frequency of muscle health assessment in routine practice was low. The muscle health assessments that are routinely ( > once/week) measured include body weight (82.9%; n = 58/70), BMI (81.4%; n = 57/70), HGS (25.7%; n = 18/70) and the Timed up and go test, chair stand test or short physical performance battery (10%; n = 7/70). The main barriers to muscle health assessment were 'lack of training/application experience' (61.4%, n = 43/70) and 'lack of device availability' (58.5%, n = 41/70).

conclusionThis study provides insights into the application of muscle health assessments within nutritional assessment among Irish dietitians. Results indicate a gap between the recognised value of muscle health and its use in nutritional assessment. Despite an almost unanimous agreement on the importance of musculature, challenges such as insufficient training and lack of equipment hinder the widespread implementation of muscle health assessment as a standard component of nutritional assessment. These findings emphasise the need for further practical education and measures to improve the availability of equipment to bridge this gap and optimise nutritional care.

Indexed as

DieteticsMuscle StrengthNutrition AssessmentNutritionistsAdultCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHand StrengthHumansIrelandMaleMiddle AgedNutritional StatusSurveys and Questionnairesdietitianmalnutritionmusclenutritional assessmentnutrition‐focused physical examsurvey

Identifiers

PMID40159670
PMCPMC11955747

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.