- Geriatrics
- Nutrition
- General medicine
MNA-SF score
Malnutrition in the elderly
The MNA-SF is the recommended short-form version of the Mini Nutritional Assessment. It combines six dimensions: food intake changes, weight loss, mobility, acute disease or recent stress, neuropsychological problems, and BMI — with an alternative using calf circumference in some versions. It allows the classification of nutritional status and the risk of malnutrition.
- Number of questions
- 6 items
- Approximate duration
- 3 to 5 minutes
- Population
- elderly people
- Modality
- Professional / Guided Collection
Terms of contract
Assessment carried out by a professional or with their support, using the unmodified official form. Weight, height, and weight changes over the last 3 months are required; if BMI is not available, calf circumference replaces it, without scoring both. Re-screening is recommended every 3 months in care homes and once a year at home.
Score interpretationMNA-SF
Sum of the points of the 6 items; total score from 0 to 14.
Total score
First reading
0 to 7
Undernutrition according to the instrument threshold.
8 to 11
Risk of undernutrition.
12 to 14
Normal nutritional status according to the MNA-SF.
12–14: normal nutritional status; 8–11: risk of malnutrition; 0–7: malnutrition.
This is a standardised nutritional screening/assessment tool. Management requires a broader clinical context.
Frequently asked questions
Sources and references
Société des Produits Nestlé S.A.; distribution/licensing Mapi Research Trust
Official MNA forms and conditions, mna-elderly.com
Questionnaires and associated scores
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