Università degli studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia

Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia
Corso di laurea in infermieristica - Sede di Modena

Abstract

Patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation are particularly prone to developing malnutrition. It has a multifactorial etiology and the use of the neutropenic diet appears to be related to a worse nutritional status. Furthermore, many studies have found a relationship between malnutrition and adverse clinical outcomes in this population.
The aim of this thesis is the identification of weaknesses in the nutritional process through the review of scientific studies in order to suggest interventions that nurse can implement to prevent malnutrition. Particular attention has been paid to the review of the literature concerning the efficacy and clinical applicability of the neutropenic diet in bone marrow transplant centers since it in addition to having a negative impact on the nutritional status also appears to significantly affect the quality of life of patients.
A review of the literature was carried out, while to better investigate the views of patients regarding the impact of neutropenic diet on quality of life, a semi-structured questionnaire was constructed and administered to them.
The review of the literature showed that several studies failed to show the efficacy of neutropenic diet. The data elaborated by the questionnaire underlined that patients are considered dissatisfied with the quality of food and that the low bacterial diet worsens the characteristics of food. 
Therefore, it is possible to question its use, while the adoption of food safety practices should be more widespread in order to improve the satisfaction of patients with regard to the quality of food and consequently reduce the risk of malnutrition.