ABSTRACT
Recent narrative reviews have described the potential efficacy of providing individuals infected with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) with additional micronutrients to reduce disease severity. Although there are compelling reasons why providing additional micronutrients or conditional amino acids may affect COVID-19-related outcomes, evidence is lacking. The objective of this scoping review is to explore and describe the literature examining the effect of providing additional micronutrients or conditional amino acids (glutamine, arginine) in adults with conditions or infections similar to COVID-19 infection on COVID-19-related health outcomes. A literature search of the MEDLINE database and hand search of Cochrane Database of systematic reviews retrieved 1,423 unique studies, and 8 studies were included in this scoping review. Four studies examined a target population with ventilator-related pneumonia and acute respiratory distress syndrome, and the other 4 studies included patients who were at risk for ventilator-associated pneumonia. Interventions included intravenous ascorbic acid, intramuscular cholecalciferol, enteral and intramuscular vitamin E, enteral zinc sulfate, and oral and parenteral glutamine. In 6 of the 8 included studies, baseline status of the nutrient of interest was not reported and, thus, it is uncertain how outcomes may vary in the context of nutrient deficiency or insufficiency compared with sufficiency. In the absence of direct evidence examining efficacy of providing additional micronutrients or conditional amino acids to standard care, registered dietitian nutritionists must rely on clinical expertise and indirect evidence to guide medical nutrition therapy for patients infected with COVID-19.
ABSTRACT
Recent evidence examining adults infected with COVID-19 has indicated a significant impact of malnutrition on health outcomes. Individuals who have multiple comorbidities, are older adults, or who are malnourished are at increased risk of being admitted to the intensive care unit and of mortality from COVID-19 infections. Hence, nutrition care to identify and address malnutrition is critical in treating and preventing further adverse health outcomes from COVID-19 infection. This document provides guidance and practice considerations for Registered Dietitian Nutritionists (RDNs) providing nutrition care for adults with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 infection in the hospital, outpatient, or homecare settings. In addition, this document discusses and provides considerations for RDNs working with individuals at risk of malnutrition secondary to food insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic.