The prevalence and nutritional implications of fast food consumption among patients receiving hemodialysis.

Background: Fast food consumption has increased dramatically in the general population over the last 25 years. However, little is known about the prevalence and nutritional implications of fast food consumption among patients receiving hemodialysis.

Methods: By using a cross-sectional study design, we obtained data on fast food consumption and nutrient intake (from four separate 24-hour dietary recalls) and nutritional parameters (from chart abstraction) for 194 randomly selected patients from 44 hemodialysis facilities in northeast Ohio.

Retrospective review: the incidence of non-ST segment elevation MI in emergency department patients presenting with decompensated heart failure.

The authors performed a 6-month review of heart failure patients presenting to a teaching hospital emergency department to determine the rate of positive serum myocardial infarction markers. All patients with an emergency department discharge diagnosis of heart failure were included; those with a creatinine level >2.0 mg/dL were excluded.