NUTRITIONAL-STATUS ASSESSMENT IN PATIENTS WITH DIABETES-MELLITUS SECONDARY TO ALCOHOLIC CHRONIC-PANCREATITIS

BACKGROUND: Diabetes mellitus secondary to alcoholic chronic pancreati tis (DM-ACP) represents 0.5-2% of all cases of diabetes mellitus (DM) and shows predominantly symptoms related to malnutrition instead of ca rdinal clinical signs of diabetes. The aim of this study was to try to further characterize the features of the malnutrition in patients wit h pancreatic insufficiency. PATIENTS, MATERIAL AND METHODS: We selecte d 40 patients (39 males and 1 female) meeting clinical, functional and morphological diagnostic criteria of DM-ACP which received a nutritio nal assessment that included estimation on fat and proteic body compar tments being classified as caloric, proteic or mixed malnutrition. RES ULTS: 29 patients (72.5%) showed some kind of malnutrition. The most f requent type was mixed (proteic-caloric) malnutrition found in 19 of t hem (47.5%), Caloric malnutrition was present in 6 (15%) and mainly pr oteic in 4 (10%). Only 11 patients with DM-ACP in our series showed a normal nourishment state. CONCLUSIONS: Large prevalence of mixed malnu trition in DM-ACP patients may be related to malabsorption of macronut rients (especially proteins and fat) due to exocrine insufficiency and misuse of nutrients as a result of the characteristic hypoinsulinemia showed by these patients.