Weight loss and senile dementia in an institutionalized elderly population.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether patients with Alzheimer's disease or senile dementia have a higher incidence of underweight and weight loss than non-demented patients. In a retrospective study, the admission weight and height and the current weight of 36 patients with Alzheimer's disease and senile dementia of the Alzheimer's type were compared with those of 31 non-demented patients. Patients with Alzheimer's disease or senile dementia were significantly (p less than .05) further below minimum acceptable body weight on admission and were significantly (p less than .05) further below minimum acceptable body weight after an average of 17 months in the institution in comparison with the control group. Additional research is needed to determine whether the weight loss seen in patients with Alzheimer's disease or senile dementia is due to a metabolic aberration inherent in the disease or to management issues in feeding those patients.