Nutritional risk factors for postoperative complications in Brazilian elderly patients undergoing major elective surgery.

Objective: In this prospective study, we assessed nutritional and immunologic risk factors for infectious complications and deaths related to infection in elderly patients undergoing major elective surgery.

Methods: Seventy patients 60 y or older were enrolled in this study. The preoperative variables analyzed were body mass index, body mass index knee height, triceps skinfold, subscapular skinfold, mid-arm muscle circumference, mid-arm muscle area, albumin, transferrin, prealbumin, and retinol-binding protein levels, immunoglobulins G, A, and M, C3, and C4 levels, total lymphocyte counts, and the occurrence of delayed hypersensitivity reactions (multitest).