ObjectiveTo investigate the prognostic value and consistency of prognostic nutritional index (PNI) and patient-generated subjective global assessment (PG-SGA) in perioperative nutritional status of patients with esophageal cancer.MethodsClinical data of 224 patients, including 186 males and 38 females with an average age of 63.08±8.42 years, who underwent esophageal cancer surgery in our hospital from November 2017 to August 2018 were retrospectively reviewed. The PNI was calculated according to the results of the first time blood and biochemical tests, and the PG-SGA assessment was also performed. According to the PNI value, the patients were divided into a good nutrition group (PNI≥45, 60 patients) and a malnutrition group (PNI<45, 164 patients). According to the PG-SGA score, the patients were divided into a good nutrition group (PG-SGA<4, 75 patients) and a malnutrition group (PG-SGA≥4, 149 patients). Nutrition-related haematological indexes and body mass index (BMI) were compared between the two groups, and the consistency of PNI and PG-SGA for nutritional assessment was analyzed.ResultsThe nutrition-related haematological indexes in different PNI groups were statistically different in the perioperative period (P<0.01). The longitudinal changes of prealbumin in patients of different PG-SGA groups were statistically different (P<0.05); the BMI of patients in different PG-SGA groups was statistically different in the perioperative period (P<0.01). The Kappa coefficient of the two indicators was 0.589 (P<0.001).ConclusionBoth PNI and PG-SGA can predict the nutritional risk of patients with esophageal cancer to some extent. PNI is an objective monitoring indicator, and PG-SGA is a subjective evaluation indicator, the combined use of which can more comprehensively reflect and predict the nutritional status of patients, and provide an important reference to the development of individualized nutrition support programs.