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Nutritional ultrasound: above body mass index, two cases presentation

Abstract

Malnutrition is a prevalent condition in chronic diseases, significantly impacting morbidity and mortality. Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is increasingly utilized in clinical practice as a rapid and accessible tool for evaluating muscle mass. Here, we present two cases of females with chronic diseases who presented with acute exacerbations of their conditions accompanied by fluid overload. Suspected of experiencing nutritional alterations, they underwent ultrasound evaluation to confirm muscle mass loss. These cases highlight the potential of ultrasound in guiding effective muscle mass assessment, particularly in pathologies prone to fluid overload, such as chronic kidney disease and heart failure.

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Fig. 1: Visual representation illustrating the nutritional ultrasound procedure, including anatomical localization, transducer specifications, and image findings from the cases.

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The project adheres to Resolution 8430 of October 4, 1993, of Colombia and had the verbal and written consent of the patient for publication as well as approval from the Fundación Cardio Infantil Ethics Committee.

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Funding

Funding

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

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Authors

Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Data collection and analysis were performed by S.G.J., S.S. and, J.C. The first draft of the manuscript was written by S.G.J. and S.S. Review and editing was made by E. Z., J.C., A.M. and, S.G.J. All authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Santiago Gómez-Jordan.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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The authors declare that the procedures were followed according to the regulations established by the Clinical Research and Ethics Committee and to the Helsinki Declaration of the World Medical Association updated in 2013.

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Informed consent was obtained from all patients.

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Gómez-Jordan, S., Castellanos-de la Hoz, J.C., Saumett, S. et al. Nutritional ultrasound: above body mass index, two cases presentation. Eur J Clin Nutr 78, 919–921 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41430-024-01459-z

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