What screening tools are recommended for identifying malnutrition in adults in primary care settings?

Within primary care settings, the recommended screening tool for identifying malnutrition in adults is the Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool (MUST). MUST assesses body mass index (BMI), percentage of unintentional weight loss, and considers the duration and likelihood of reduced nutrient intake, making it suitable for initial registration and when clinical concern arises, such as unintentional weight loss or poor appetite. Screening should also be considered opportunistically during health checks or flu vaccinations. This approach aligns with NICE guidelines emphasizing the use of MUST for systematic malnutrition screening in community and primary care contexts ¹.

Additionally, the Malnutrition Screening Tool (MST) has been recommended by other health authorities, such as the Norwegian Directorate of Health, for all adults, highlighting its validity and ease of use in various settings (Paur et al., 2022). Recent systematic reviews support the validity of these tools, including MUST and MST, for accurately identifying adults at risk of malnutrition, which is critical for timely nutritional intervention (Cortés-Aguilar et al., 2024).

Therefore, while MUST remains the primary recommended tool in UK primary care per NICE guidance, awareness of alternative validated tools like MST is beneficial, especially as emerging evidence supports their effectiveness (Paur et al., 2022; Cortés-Aguilar et al., 2024). Screening should be performed by trained healthcare professionals and repeated when clinical concerns arise to ensure early detection and management of malnutrition ¹.