The Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition criteria for the diagnosis of malnutrition in patients with inflammatory bowel disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: This study aims to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of tools commonly employed in clinical practice for the assessment of malnutrition in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), including Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM) criteria, Subjective Global Assessment (SGA), European Society of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (ESPEN) criteria, and World Health Organization (WHO)-related body mass index (BMI). METHODS: Eligible observational studies and randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were identified through searches of databases, including PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science Core Collection, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), and Epistemonikos, until August 2024. Clinical trial registries, grey literature, and reference lists of included studies were also screened. Study selection, data extraction, and quality assessment were conducted independently by two reviewers. A bivariate mixed-effects model was utilized to evaluate the diagnostic test accuracy, producing pooled estimates for sensitivity and specificity with the corresponding confidence intervals (CIs), using SGA as a reference method for malnutrition diagnosis. RESULTS: Nine primary studies (1420 participants) and data from one unpublished work were included in the present systematic review. Based on data derived from three studies, GLIM criteria demonstrated high sensitivity (0.80, 95% CI: 0.68-0.88) and moderate specificity (0.71, 95% CI: 0.53-0.84) using SGA as a reference standard. The certainty of the evidence supporting these findings was rated as very low. CONCLUSIONS: The GLIM criteria demonstrate potential as an effective tool for diagnosing malnutrition in patients with IBD. However, further validation is necessary, requiring additional diagnostic accuracy studies to enhance their reliability and establish their clinical applicability.