Impact of pureed and liquidised diets on health-related quality of life scores in older patients during postacute rehabilitation: A pilot study.

BACKGROUND

Consuming texture-modified diets was considered to negatively affect health-related quality of life (HR-QoL). However, the precise relationship between the levels of food texture consumed and HR-QoL remains uncertain. The present study aimed to determine the association between levels of food texture consumed and HR-QoL.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study included 122 hospitalised patients aged ≥ 65 years (mean ± SD age 78.9 ± 7.9 years; 48.4% female) who required postacute rehabilitation. Consumed food texture levels were classified using the International Dysphagia Diet Standardization Initiative (IDDSI) framework 2.0. HR-QoL was evaluated using the five-level EuroQoL five-dimension (EQ-5D-5L). The association between food texture levels and HR-QoL was analysed using a multivariate linear regression model.

RESULTS

The lower food texture levels consumed were associated with significantly lower EQ-5D-5L scores. Consumption of pureed (IDDSI Level 4) and liqudised (IDDSI Level 3) diets were associated with lower EQ-5D-5L scores among older patients undergoing postacute rehabilitation (regression coefficient -0.304; 95% confidence interval = -0.472 to -0.137 and regression coefficient, -0.444, 95% confidence interval = -0.676 to -0.213, respectivly).

CONCLUSIONS

The findings suggest a link between the consumption of pureed and liquidised diets and lower HR-QoL scores in older hospitalised patients undergoing rehabilitation. To establish a clearer cause-and-effect relationship, future research should encompass multicentre and longitudinal studies, building upon the insights from the present study.