Surgical recovery is profoundly influenced by muscle health, yet muscle-targeted nutritional strategies are often overlooked in perioperative care. In this presentation, Dr. Carla Prado will explore the critical role of body composition and physical function assessment in identifying patients with low physiological reserve—those most at risk for poor surgical outcomes. Drawing on emerging evidence, she will highlight validated tools for muscle assessment and estimation, discuss their clinical utility, and how they can guide effective, personalized nutritional interventions. The discussion will be relevant to professionals across all fields of healthcare. Dr. Prado will also emphasize the importance of implementing these strategies early in the care continuum, beginning in the preoperative phase and continuing through hospitalization and recovery. With a focus on practical application, she will discuss how to integrate muscle-targeted nutritional care into multimodal prehabilitation pathways, and how to ensure continuity through well-coordinated transitions of care.
Dr. Carla Prado is a Distinguished University Professor and a Canada Research Chair in Integrative Nutrition, Body Composition, and Energy Metabolism (Tier 1). She is also a registered dietitian. She directs the Human Nutrition Research Unit, recognized as one of the world’s leading research and training facilities for body composition and energy metabolism assessments. Dr. Prado's research focuses on assessing nutritional status through precise measurements of body composition and energy metabolism. Her current research program investigates the prevalence and health outcomes of abnormal body composition phenotypes in patients with diverse chronic conditions. She is also developing targeted nutrition interventions to optimize body composition and improve health outcomes. Dr. Prado is deeply committed to public engagement and education, translating scientific knowledge into accessible tools that highlight the importance of nutrition and improve patient care. She is an Associate Editor for two of the top journals in her field, serves on several international clinical guideline committees, and is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences as well as a member of the Royal Society of Canada’s College of New Scholars, Artists, and Scientists. She was named one of Canada’s Top 40 Under 40, one of Canada’s Most Powerful Women: Top 100, and a Highly Cited Researcher by Clarivate™ (Web of Science).