Poor appetite and growth differentiation factor-15 as predictors of insufficient energy and protein intake during and after hospitalization in older adults with acute medical illness: Exploratory analysis of a randomized controlled trial

Higher GDF-15 levels showed a non-significant trend toward lower baseline energy and protein intake. GDF-15 and SNAQ offer limited ability to identify insufficient energy and protein intake, based on predictive performance. These exploratory findings should therefore be interpreted cautiously. Larger studies are needed to validate and further refine the use of GDF-15 and SNAQ in clinical settings.