The Dietary Assessment Unit (DAU) provides CTRC investigators with state of the art research quality nutrition evaluations, nutrient analyses, patient management, and nutrition education to subjects enrolled in CTRC protocols. The Unit is staffed with registered dietitians with extensive experience in clinical research, as well as diet technicians.
The services provided fall into the general categories of consultation on study design or staff training, nutrition intervention or diet analysis. All charges are based on the hourly rates for the dietitians, supplies and license costs for nutrient analysis software.
Consultation: Prior to protocol submission, the research bionutritionists are available to consult with investigators to provide advice on the design for the nutrition component of their study. This may include selection of the appropriate methodology or instrument or design of an intervention.
Nutrition Intervention: The nature of nutrition interventions are protocol specific, and often involve evaluation of nutrition status based on diet histories, food tolerances and/or preferences, review of anthropometric data, patient charts and lab reports. Using this information, dietary recommendations and/or plan study meals may be individualized according to study guidelines. This includes designing recipes and meals for specific study goals and calculating their nutrient content. The intervention may also include family education regarding dietary modifications (e.g., protein modification, weight management planning) or patient consultation.
Diet Analysis: Research dietitians and technicians are able to collect and analyze dietary information from 24-hour recalls by phone or during outpatient visits and 3 to 7 day written dietary and/or activity records. The dietary information is analyzed using the Nutrition Data System (NDS) software developed by the Division of Epidemiology at the University of Minnesota or the Food Processor Program developed by ESHA Research. They also design and administer nutrient specific questionnaires to meet protocol requirements. After completion of the interview or review of a food record, any unresolved questions will be addressed according to specific guidelines. Once input of dietary data is complete, the bionutritionist will review data for accuracy and make changes as needed. After completion of the review and clean-up processes of all data, electronic files with nutrient information are generated.
Updated December 2012