Degree Name
MS (Master of Science)
Program
Clinical Nutrition
Date of Award
5-2005
Committee Chair or Co-Chairs
W. Andrew Clark
Committee Members
Jamie B. Kridler, Alison K. Schaefer
Abstract
The purpose of this research was to evaluate whether serum prealbumin levels would serve as a predictor of hospital length of stay for elderly orthopedic patients who underwent hip replacement surgery. The study consisted of a set of 54 patients admitted to a hospital in Bristol, Tennessee. Patients with depleted prealbumin levels, low to low/normal prealbumin levels, or normal prealbumin levels were analyzed. Data collected from a retrospective chart review included: age, length of stay, serum glucose, sodium, potassium, hematocrit, hemoglobin, BUN, creatinine, WBC, prealbumin, and post operative diet consumption. Data were analyzed using analysis of variance for treatment effects. Because of the limited size of the data set, probabilities approaching p<0.10 were considered and levels of p<0.05 were considered significant. The research failed to show a significant relationship between prealbumin levels at admission and length of patient stay during post-operative recovery.
Document Type
Thesis - unrestricted
Recommended Citation
Pennington, Brandy Paige, "The Impact of Prealbumin on Postoperative Length of Stay in Elderly Orthopedic Patients." (2005). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 1019. https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/1019
Copyright
Copyright by the authors.