Impact of nationwide essential trace element shortages: A before-after, single-center analysis of hospitalized adults receiving home parenteral nutrition therapy.

BACKGROUND: Recent data on the prevalence of essential trace element (ETE) deficiencies in home parenteral nutrition (HPN) patients are scarce. We investigated whether ETE deficiencies are still an important issue for HPN patients and whether the prevalence of such deficiencies may be influenced by nationwide drug shortages. METHODS: We conducted a single-institution, retrospective analysis from 2006 to 2015 of hospitalized HPN patients who continued PN during and in between hospitalizations. In subgroup analysis, patients were dichotomized as those with HPN duration <1 vs ≥1 year. Zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), and selenium (Se) levels were abstracted for patients over the study period. Prevalence of ETE deficiency was compared using chi-squared test for patients hospitalized during nonshortage vs shortage (2011-2014) periods. RESULTS: Ninety-six patients were included in the analysis. Prevalence of ETE deficiency during nonshortage vs shortage periods was 48% vs 54% (Zn), 15% vs 21% (Cu), and 24% vs 48% (Se; P = .01), respectively. When comparing patients who received HPN <1 year vs ≥1 year, the prevalence of Se deficiency doubled during shortage in both subgroups (24% to 42% vs 26% to 49%); and Cu deficiency tripled during shortage period in the group receiving HPN ≥1 year (5% to 16%). CONCLUSION: ETE deficiency is prevalent in hospitalized HPN patients and was exacerbated during nationwide shortages of parenteral supplements. Statistical significance may be limited by small sample size. Future studies are needed to determine optimal ETE supplementation strategies for minimizing the impacts of nationwide drug shortages on HPN patients.

Early Enteral Nutrition Adequacy Mitigates the Neutrophil-Lymphocyte Ratio Improving Clinical Outcomes in Critically Ill Surgical Patients.

BACKGROUND: Neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is a measure of host inflammatory response; a higher NLR is associated with worse clinical outcomes. Enteral nutrition (EN) may mitigate inflammation through interaction with gut-associated lymphoid tissue. We hypothesized that early EN adequacy in critically ill surgical patients is associated with lower NLR and better clinical outcomes. METHODS: In this retrospective study, we analyzed data from adult surgical intensive care unit (ICU) patients receiving EN. NLR at baseline ICU admission (NLR-B), NLR after 3-5 days of EN (F-NLR), nutrition adequacy, caloric deficit (CD), protein deficit (PD), hospital length of stay (LOS), ICU LOS, 28-day ventilator-free days (28-VFD), and in-hospital mortality were collected. Tertiles groups were created for NLR, F-NLR, CD, and PD; the highest (H) and lowest (L) tertiles were compared. Regression analyses were performed to control for effect of age, gender, APACHE II, and NLR. RESULTS: Subjects in the L-CD group had lower median F-NLR (7 [range, 5-11] vs 10 [7-22], P = 0.005) and shorter ICU LOS (9 [6-16]) vs 16 [9-32] days; P = 0.006). The L-NLR group had shorter hospital LOS (18 [10-31] vs 22 [15-38] days, P = 0.023), greater 28-VFD (23 [18-25] vs 19 [11-22] days, P = 0.005), and lower in-hospital mortality (13% vs 41%, P = 0.002). CONCLUSION: In critically ill surgical patients, early enteral caloric adequacy is associated with less inflammation and improved clinical outcomes.

Early nutritional inadequacy is associated with psoas muscle deterioration and worse clinical outcomes in critically ill surgical patients.

PURPOSE: To explore whether psoas cross sectional area (CSA) and density (Hounsfield Units, HU) are associated with nutritional adequacy and clinical outcomes in surgical intensive care unit patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Subjects with at least one CT scan within 72h of ICU admission were included. Demographic, nutritional, radiographic, and outcomes data were collected. Psoas muscle CSA and HU were assessed at the L4-L5 intervertebral disk level. Change (Δ) in CSA and HU overall and per day were calculated. RESULTS: 140 patients were included. There was no significant correlation between baseline CSA and HU and clinical outcomes. Patients with at least two CT scans (n=65), had a median decrease in CSA of -15% [IQR: -20%, -8%] and decrease in HU of -2% [IQR: -30%, +24%]. Patients with the greatest daily %HU decline received significantly fewer calories/kg and proteins/kg and accumulated greater protein deficits at day 7 and overall. Patients with daily %HU increase had the shortest ICU and hospital LOS and more ventilator-free days in univariate and multivariable analyses. CONCLUSIONS: In this exploratory study, early nutritional deficits were correlated with muscle quality deterioration. Inpatient gain in psoas density, compared to maintenance or loss, is associated with shorter hospital stay.

Increased Efficacy and Safety of Enteral Nutrition Support with a Protocol (ASNET) in Noncritical Patients: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: Unintentional underfeeding is common in patients receiving enteral nutrition (EN), and is associated with increased risk of malnutrition complications. Protocols for EN in critically ill patients have been shown to enhance adequacy, resulting in better clinical outcomes; however, outside of intensive care unit (ICU) settings, the influence of a protocol for EN is unknown. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of implementing an EN protocol in a noncritical setting. DESIGN: Randomized controlled clinical trial. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTINGS: This trial was conducted from 2014 to 2016 in 90 adult hospitalized patients (non-ICU) receiving exclusively EN. Patients with carcinomatosis, ICU admission, or <72 hours of EN were excluded. INTERVENTION: The intervention group received EN according to a protocol, whereas the control group was fed according to standard practice. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The proportion of patients receiving ≥80% of their caloric target at Day 4 after EN initiation. STATISTICAL ANALYSES PERFORMED: Student t test or Wilcoxon rank-sum test were used for continuous variables and the difference between the groups in the time to receipt of the optimal amount of nutrition was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier curves. RESULTS: Forty-five patients were randomized to each group. At Day 4 after EN initiation, 61% of patients in the intervention arm had achieved the primary end point compared with 23% in the control group (P=0.001). In malnourished patients, 63% achieved the primary end point in the intervention group compared with 16% in the control group (P=0.003). The cumulative deficit on Day 4 was lower in the intervention arm compared with the control arm: 2,507 kcal (interquartile range [IQR]=1,262 to 2,908 kcal) vs 3,844 kcal (IQR=2,620 to 4,808 kcal) (P<0.001) and 116 g (IQR=69 to 151 g) vs 191 g (IQR=147 to 244 g) protein (P<0.001), respectively. The rates of gastrointestinal complications were not significantly different between groups. CONCLUSIONS: Implementation of an EN protocol outside the ICU significantly improved the delivery of calories and protein when compared with current standard practice without increasing gastrointestinal complications.