Dosing errors in total parenteral nutrition prescriptions at a specialized cancer care hospital of Lahore: The role of clinical pharmacist.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To determine the role of pharmacist in identifying the frequency of errors in total parenteral nutrition prescriptions in cancer patients for the years 2015 and 2016. Total parenteral nutrition has a high potential for medical errors because of its complex composition, thus leading to severe complications. Pharmacist review of the prescriptions reduces the risk of inappropriate prescribing, preparation, and administration of parenteral nutrition. METHODOLOGY: An observational study was performed by collecting data of total parenteral nutrition prescriptions of 71 patients for the last two years from Pharmacy Department of specialized cancer care hospital. RESULTS: It was found that the frequency of dosing errors and incomplete prescriptions was higher in 2015 compared to 2016. Additionally, the frequency of macro and micronutrients dosing errors were higher in adults (23.4% and 66.2%) compared to pediatrics (14.6% and 46.6%). Furthermore, the frequency of illegible prescriptions was higher (5.03%) in year 2016 as compared to year 2015 (1.64%). Nevertheless, such dose interventions improved patient's weight (20%) and promoted enteral feeding (42.3%). Major complication was hypophosphatemia (39.4%) followed by hyperglycemia (10%) and catheter-induced infection, i.e. sepsis (4.2%). CONCLUSION: In conclusion, data suggested that pharmacist played instrumental role in identifying and rectifying total parenteral nutrition dosing errors for both micronutrients and macronutrients-with higher frequency in 2015 compared to 2016, leading to improvements in total parenteral nutrition-related complications and switches to enteral feeding.

False Measurement of Blood Amino Acids by LC-MS/MS in a Patient Dependent on Matrix Effect after Total Parenteral Nutrition Infusion.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Although it is widely known that the total parenteral nutrition (TPN) used frequently in intensive care units has unwanted side effects, there is little known about how it interferes with the amino acid levels taken during the diagnosis of metabolic diseases. Amino acid can lead to inaccurate measurements with mass spectrometry due to its high molecular content of lipids and carbohydrates, which modifies the blood matrix. The purpose of this study was to emphasize the results of amino acid interference, measured with mass spectrometry, in patients administered with TPN. CASE PRESENTATION: Incorrect clinical interpretation resulted in the case of a pneumonia patient with false positive and negative blood amino acid levels caused by TPN infusion. The amino acid profile had been requested to rule out an amino acid metabolic defect in the two-year-old boy who arrived at the pediatric clinic complaining of respiratory distress, tachypnea and hypoxemia. He was monitored in the intensive care unit for further investigation. The personnel who had performed phlebotomy also carried out the sampling during the TPN infusion administration. This caused the amino acid results and an incorrect interpretation. The following deviation ratios were detected: phenylalanine 102%, leucine 86%, isoleucine 106%, GABA 200%, citrulline 238%, glutamine 178%, ornithine 216%, 1- methyl-l-histidine 1471%, serine 312%, alanine 163%, glycine 355%, homocitrulline and carnosine 444%. The amino acid blood level measurements taken for diagnosis and screening in suspected metabolic disease may lead to involuntary false low or elevated results in patients administered with TPN. CONCLUSION: This case demonstrates that TPN solutions affect the reference method of mass spectrometry measurement methods due to the concentration of ingredients. We suggest that inaccurate results can be avoided by carrying out the sampling prior to TPN infusion in patients whose plasma amino acid levels will be measured.

Enteral versus parenteral nutrition in the conservative treatment of upper gastrointestinal fistula after surgery: a multicenter, randomized, parallel-group, open-label, phase III study (NUTRILEAK study).

BACKGROUND: Postoperative upper gastrointestinal fistula (PUGIF) is a devastating complication, leading to high mortality (reaching up to 80%), increased length of hospital stay, reduced health-related quality of life and increased health costs. Nutritional support is a key component of therapy in such cases, which is related to the high prevalence of malnutrition. In the prophylactic setting, enteral nutrition (EN) is associated with a shorter hospital stay, a lower incidence of severe infectious complications, lower severity of complications and decreased cost compared to total parenteral nutrition (TPN) following major upper gastrointestinal (GI) surgery. There is little evidence available for the curative setting after fistula occurrence. We hypothesize that EN increases the 30-day fistula closure rate in PUGIF, allowing better health-related quality of life without increasing the morbidity or mortality. METHODS/DESIGN: The NUTRILEAK trial is a multicenter, randomized, parallel-group, open-label phase III trial to assess the efficacy of EN (the experimental group) compared with TPN (the control group) in patients with PUGIF. The primary objective of the study is to compare EN versus TPN in the treatment of PUGIF (after esophagogastric resection including bariatric surgery, duodenojejunal resection or pancreatic resection with digestive tract violation) in terms of the 30-day fistula closure rate. Secondary objectives are to evaluate the 6-month postrandomization fistula closure rate, time of first fistula closure (in days), the medical- and surgical treatment-related complication rate at 6 months after randomization, the fistula-related complication rate at 6 months after randomization, the type and severity of early (30 days after randomization) and late fistula-related complications (over 30 days after randomization), 30-day and 6-month postrandomization mortality rate, nutritional status at day 30, day 60, day 90 and day 180 postrandomization, the mean length of hospital stay, the patient's health-related quality of life (by self-assessment questionnaire), oral feeding time and direct costs of treatment. A total of 321 patients will be enrolled. DISCUSSION: The two nutritional supports are already used in daily practice, but most surgeons are reluctant to use the enteral route in case of PUGIF. This study will be the first randomized trial testing the role of EN versus TPN in PUGIF. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT03742752. Registered on 14 November 2018.

Recomendaciones para el tratamiento nutrometabólico especializado del paciente crítico: introducción, metodología y listado de recomendaciones. Grupo de Trabajo de Metabolismo y Nutrición de la Sociedad Española de Medicina Intensiva, Crítica y Unidades Coronarias (SEMICYUC) / Recommendations for specialized nutritional-metabolic management of the critical patient: introduction, methodology and list of recommendations. Metabolism and Nutrition Working Group of the Spanish Society of Intensive and Critical Care Medicine and Coronary Units (SEMICYUC)

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Sustaining improved nutritional support for very low birthweight infants.

BACKGROUND: Postnatal growth failure (PGF) in very low birthweight (VLBW) infants is a result of factors such as prematurity, acute illness and suboptimal nutritional support. Before this project began, 84% of appropriately grown VLBW infants in our neonatal intensive care unit experienced PGF. The aims of this quality improvement project were to reduce the percentage of infants discharged with PGF to less than 50% within 2 years and to maintain a rate of PGF under 50%. METHODS: All inborn VLBW infants were eligible for this study. Infants with congenital anomalies were excluded. We determined key drivers for optimal nutrition and identified potentially better practices (process measures) based on a review of the literature, which included more rapid initiation of starter total parenteral nutrition (TPN), aggressive use and advancement of regular TPN, and fortification of human milk when the volume of intake reached 80 mL/kg/day. Three Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycles were tested. RESULTS: Time to initiation of starter TPN was significantly reduced from 5.5 hours to under 3 hours. Regular TPN provided the goals for amino acids and lipids at increased frequency after the first two PDSA cycles. The proportion of infants whose milk was fortified at 80 mL/kg/day increased after the third PDSA cycle. CONCLUSIONS: We found a sustained decrease in the percentage of infants discharged with PGF from 84% at baseline to fewer than 50% beginning in 2010-2011 through 2016, with 23.1% of infants experiencing PGF in 2016. We have achieved improved nutritional support for VLBW infants using the model for improvement.

Physical stability of an all-in-one parenteral nutrition admixture for preterm infants upon mixing with micronutrients and drugs.

Objectives: The main objective was to investigate Y-site compatibility of intravenous drugs with one standard total parenteral nutrition (TPN) admixture for preterm infants. Since micro-precipitation was observed in the water phase after addition of trace elements, the concentration effect on micro-precipitation formation developed as a sub-goal. Methods: Seven drugs (ampicillin, ceftazidime, fluconazole, fosphenytoin, furosemide, metronidazole and paracetamol) were mixed in three mixing ratios with one preterm TPN admixture. Samples were investigated within 1 hour and again after 4 hours. Precipitation was studied in a lipid-free version called TPNaq by light obscuration, turbidimetry and visual examination. Emulsion stability data were assessed by light obscuration and laser diffraction. pH was measured to assess the theoretical risk of precipitation and emulsion destabilisation. The influence of different concentrations of trace elements on precipitation was investigated by visual examination, turbidimetry and light obscuration. Results: Ampicillin, ceftazidime, fosphenytoin and furosemide led to precipitation after mixing with TPNaq. In some samples of TPN and fluconazole, metronidazole and paracetamol, the emulsion droplet size was above the acceptance limit, although this might also be inherent to the TPN admixture. An unexpected formation of micro-precipitate correlating with increasing amounts of added trace elements might be caused by an interaction of cysteine and copper, and complicated the compatibility assessment with drugs. Conclusions: The micro-precipitate resulting from the addition of trace elements should be investigated further. This study did not provide sufficient evidence to recommend Y-site infusion of the tested drugs and the preterm admixture; however, it might offer some additional support to other compatibility data.

Impact of total parenteral nutrition standardization led by pharmacist on quality in postoperative patients with colorectal cancer.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Abdominal surgery significantly affects the structure and function of the gastrointestinal system of patients, total parenteral nutrition (TPN) is an important nutrition support method for postoperative patients. However, in the process of TPN practice, the excessive fat emulsion and compound amino-acid prescriptions ratio are often prescribed by doctors. To address the problem, we developed the computerized TPN prescription management system to promote the personalized provision of TPN. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the intervention effects of the computerized TPN prescription management system, which is designed by pharmacists in the Surgical Department of Abdominal Oncology at Zhejiang Cancer Hospital in July 2015. SUBJECTS/METHODS: The computerized TPN prescription management system applied in Surgical Department of Abdominal Oncology on 1 July 2015. The computerized TPN prescription management system was evaluated by comparing the patients who were treated 3 months after the application of the system with the control subjects who were treated 3 months prior to the application of TPN prescription management system in Surgical Department of Abdominal Oncology. RESULTS: In total, 218 TPN prescription-treated patients with colorectal cancer received surgery treatment were analyzed, including 121 subjects who received the treatment 3 months prior to application of TPN prescription system (IPN period) and 97 subjects who received the treatment after 3 months of the system application (SPN period). The rates of optimized TPN prescriptions are 47.1% and 88.7% prior to and after application of TPN prescription review system, respectively (p < 0.001). In detail, prior to application of TPN prescription review system, abnormal glucose-lipid ratio and nitrogen-calorie ratio are the most common problems, which accounted for 74.3 and 97.9%, respectively (p < 0.01). Whereas the proportion of the insufficient dosage of amino acids is 62 and 96.9%, respectively (p < 0.01). Other problems are insufficient dosage of insulin and excessive fat soluble vitamin supplement. After application of TPN prescription review system, as the glucose-lipid ratio and nitrogen-calorie ratio are set up in fixed range according to the nutrition treatment guidelines, only a small amount of TPN prescriptions have the problem of insufficient dosage of compound amino acid. Furthermore, before and after the application of TPN management software, the gender, age, performance status (PS) score and BMI index of the two groups of colorectal cancer patients were not statistically different (p > 0.05). There were significant differences in albumin and prealbumin between the two groups after operation (p < 0.05), and there was a significant difference in total protein (p < 0.001). There were significant differences in alanine aminotransferase and indirect bilirubin between liver and kidney function (p < 0.01), and there were significant differences in aspartate aminotransferase and total bilirubin (p < 0.05). Other total cholesterol, L-γ-glutamyl transferase, direct bilirubin and creatinine were not statistically different (p > 0.05). Blood routine (WBC, Hb and lymphocyte), length of stay and recurrence rate were not statistically different (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The application of TPN management software not only standardized the doctor's TPN medical advice, but also improved the qualified rate of TPN doctor's advice, thus ensuring the safety of the patient's medication. It also had a positive effect on postoperative recovery of colorectal cancer patients, and ensured the efficacy of the treatment of patients. In addition, it reduced the workload of the pharmacist's audit prescription and improved the efficiency of the audit prescription, and further emphasized the role and value of pharmacists.

A protocol for sustained reduction of Total Parenteral Nutrition and cost savings by improvement of nutritional care in hospitals.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Malnutrition and the use of Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN) contribute considerably to hospital costs. Recently, we reported on the introduction of malnutrition screening and monitoring of TPN use in our hospital, which resulted in a large (40%) reduction in TPN and improved quality of nutritional care in two years (2011/12). Here, we aimed to assure continuation of improved care by developing a detailed malnutrition screening and TPN use protocol involving instruction tools for hospital staff, while monitoring the results in the following two years (2013/14). METHODS: A TPN decision tree for follow up of TPN in patients and a TP-EN instruction card for caregivers was introduced, showing TPN/EN introduction schedules based on the energy needs of patients according to EB guidelines, also addressing the risk of refeeding syndrome. TPN patients were monitored by dietitians and TPN usage and costs were presented to the (medical) staff. Screening and treatment of malnourished patients by dietitians is simultaneously ongoing. RESULTS: In 2014 48% of patients, hospitalized for at least 48 h, were screened on malnutrition, 17% of them were diagnosed at risk, 7.9% malnourished and treated by dietitians. TPN usage dropped by 53% and cost savings of 51% were obtained due to 50% decrease of TPN users in 2014 versus 2010. TPN over EN ratio dropped from 2.4 in 2010 to 1.2 in 2014. CONCLUSION: Sustained improvement of nutritional care and reduction of TPN usage and costs is possible by introduction of procedures embedded in the existing structures.

Iatrogenic Wernicke encephalopathy in a patient with severe hyperemesis gravidarum.

BACKGROUND: Hyperemesis gravidarum complicates 0.5-2.0% of pregnancies and may lead to substantial nutritional deficiencies. Total parenteral nutrition can be used in severe cases in an attempt to avoid such deficiencies. Rarely, thiamine deficiency resulting in Wernicke encephalopathy occurs, with significant maternal morbidity. CASE: We present the case of a 30-year-old woman with hyperemesis gravidarum at 13 4/7 weeks of gestation treated with prolonged total parenteral nutrition that lacked thiamine supplementation, resulting in iatrogenic Wernicke encephalopathy. After high-dose intravenous thiamine repletion, she experienced slow resolution of her symptoms. CONCLUSION: Pregnancies complicated by hyperemesis gravidarum treated with total parenteral nutrition represent potential high-risk clinical scenarios for thiamine deficiency. Compositions of total parenteral nutrition are not standardized. Thus, physicians must confirm repletion of all essential components to avoid significant morbidity.

Current trends and future challenges in neonatal parenteral nutrition.

A number of adaptations in total parenteral nutrition (TPN) protocols and practices for preterm neonates have been realized in the past several years, resulting in better survival and developmental outcomes. The early provision of appropriate concentrations of amino acids and energy are now recommended in evidence-based guidelines. Standardized TPN formulations are now available for many patients and may be associated with cost savings and improved adherence to guidelines. Several advantages of these preparations, including promotion of safer administration, consistent adherence to guidelines, and overall best practices, have been well documented. However, careful monitoring is still required to optimize nutrition for individual patients and to support overall safety as TPN practices continue to change. Additional research is needed to develop new lipid formulations that are tailored for safe use by very low birth weight (VLBW) and extremely low birth weight (ELBW) infants. This review presents recent research and improvements to guidelines, as well as future product needs for VLBW and ELBW neonates.

Achieving parenteral nutrition goals in the critically ill newborns: standardized better than individualized formulations?

AIM: The aim of this paper was to determine if the total parenteral nutrition (PN) goals for newborns in the first two weeks of lifer were better achieved with individualized prescriptions (IND-PN) or standardized formulations STD-PN prescriptions. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted in a 16-bed polyvalent pediatric and neonatal intensive care unit in a university hospital, to compare two one-year periods, before and after a move from individualized to standardized formulations. All the prescriptions for newborns who were admitted to our unit on their first day of life and required total PN were evaluated. The primary end-point was the percentage of prescriptions full filling the PN goals defined in the written policy of our unit. RESULTS: More than 3500 prescriptions were included. The goals of PN were better achieved with STD-PN (44.0% vs. 9.4% of the prescriptions)., even after adjustment for term and birth weight. Differences between groups appeared as early as the third day of PN and remained during the first 15 days of PN. CONCLUSION: The goals of total PN were better achieved with STD-PN. Perhaps because standardized formulations contain fixed and proportional amounts of nutrients, their use results in less deviation from the established policy.

Computer programming: quality and safety for neonatal parenteral nutrition orders.

BACKGROUND: Computerized software programs reduce errors and increase consistency when ordering parenteral nutrition (PN). The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of our computerized neonatal PN calculator ordering program in reducing errors and optimizing nutrient intake. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a retrospective study of infants requiring PN during the first 2-3 weeks of life. Caloric, protein, calcium, and phosphorus intakes; days above and below amino acid (AA) goals; and PN ordering errors were recorded. Infants were divided into 3 groups by birth weight for analysis: ≤1000 g, 1001-1500 g, and >1500 g. Intakes and outcomes of infants before (2007) vs after (2009) implementation of the calculator for each group were compared. RESULTS: There were no differences in caloric, protein, or phosphorus intakes in 2007 vs 2009 in any group. Mean protein intakes were 97%-99% of goal for ≤1000-g and 1001- to 1500-g infants in 2009 vs 87% of goal for each group in 2007. In 2007, 7.6 per 100 orders were above and 11.5 per 100 were below recommended AA intakes. Calcium intakes were higher in 2009 vs 2007 in ≤1000-g (46.6 ± 6.1 vs 39.5 ± 8.0 mg/kg/d, P < .001) and >1500-g infants (50.6 ± 7.4 vs 39.9 ± 8.3 mg/kg/d, P < .001). Ordering errors were reduced from 4.6 per 100 in 2007 to 0.1 per 100 in 2009. CONCLUSION: Our study reaffirms that computerized ordering systems can increase the quality and safety of neonatal PN orders. Calcium and AA intakes were optimized and ordering errors were minimized using the computer-based ordering program.

Quality assessment of total parenteral nutrition admixtures by the use of fractional factorial design.

BACKGROUND/AIM: Parenteral nutrition as a specific as pect of providing nutritients still remains a permanent topic of both theoretical and experimental research. Total parenteral nutrition (TPN) admixtures have complex con tents making difficult to maintain their stability. The most critical parameter is the diameter of a lipid droplet, i.e. droplet size distribution. It is recommended that droplet size should not be more than 5 microm and that the presence of greater droplets should not exceede the value of 0.05%. Lipid droplets size is affected particularly by electrolyte addition, especially polyvalent cations. There is a danger of the added electrolytes interaction with lipid droplets which leads to their aggregation and negative effects upon the admixtures stability. The aim of this study was to as sess the effect of added electrolyte and lipid phase quan tity on the admixture stability. METHODS: Electrolytes were added to the studied admixture of a defined basic formulation contents in accordance with recommenda tions from the literature. Droplets size measurements were performed using the method of laser diffraction with a laser particles analyzer. Effects of independent variables were calculated and evaluated using commercial software. Na(+), K(+), Ca(2+) and Mg(2+) concentrations, as well as the quantity of fat phase were chosen as studied fac tors, i.e. independed variables. The system response, or dependent variable was the median of droplets size. Each of the factors was varied at two levels, higher (+1) and lower (-1), according to the 2(5-2) fractional factorial design. RESULTS: The study suggested the presence of relative uni formity of the results of all the measurements regardless of the quantity of added electrolytes and lipid phase. It was shown that undoubtedly there is the influence of 2 valent cations (calcium and magnesium) upon lipid drop lets size, which is in a direct correlation with theoretical assumption. CONCLUSION: Within a 72-hour testing period there was no significant increase in droplet size, i.e. the studied admixtures remained stable considering droplet size median as the criterion of stability.

Educational outcomes associated with providing a comprehensive guidelines program about nursing care of preterm neonates receiving total parenteral nutrition.

Poor understanding or practice of Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN) causes devastating complications. Therefore, good Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) nursing care for preterm neonates and close monitoring of complications is essential for successful TPN therapy. The study was conducted in NICU at Ain Shams University Hospital in Cairo, Egypt, using a quasi-experimental research design with prepost intervention assessments. Data was collected using a self-administered questionnaire sheet and an observation checklist (prepost format) and developed a comprehensive guidelines program about nursing care of TPN of preterm neonates. Results revealed that the program had a significant positive impact on nurses' knowledge and practice outcomes.

Growth of microorganisms in total parenteral nutrition solutions without lipid.

BACKGROUND: To identify the microorganisms that can grow rapidly in total parenteral nutrition (TPN) solutions, we investigated the growth of the major causes of catheter-related blood stream infection (Staphylococcus aureus, Serratia marcescens, Bacillus cereus, and Candida albicans) in TPN solutions without lipid. METHODS: Experiment 1: A commercial TPN solution without lipid containing multivitamins (pH5.6) was used. A specific number of each test microorganism was added to each 10 mL of the TPN solution and incubated at room temperature. An aliquot of test solution was sampled and inoculated to SCD agar plates at 0, 24, and 48 hrs after the addition of the microorganisms. The number of microorganisms was counted as colony forming units. Experiment 2: The other 2 commercial TPN solutions without lipid (pH5.5) were supplemented with multivitamins. The pH values of the solutions were adjusted to about 6.0, 6.5, or 7.0 using 0.5 mol/L NaOH. The addition of microorganisms, incubation, and counting were performed in the same manner. RESULTS: Experiment 1: S. aureus, S. marcescens, and B. cereus did not increase in the TPN solution without lipid containing multivitamins (pH5.6), but C. albicans increased rapidly. Experiment 2: The 3 bacterial species did not increase even at pH6.0, but increased at pH6.5 and increased rapidly at pH7.0 in both TPN solutions. C. albicans increased similarly at any pH. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that bacterial species cannot grow in TPN solutions without lipid due to the acidity (pH5.6 or lower), but Candida species can grow regardless of the acidity.

Gestión de la calidad en nutrición parenteral. Prevalencia de hiperglucemia en pacientes con nutrición parenteral total / Quality management in parenteral nutrition. Prevalence of hyperglycemia among patients with total parenteral nutrition

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Comparison of two types of TPN prescription methods in preterm neonates.

OBJECTIVE: Total parenteral nutrition is commonly used in neonates' intensive care units for nutritional support of preterm neonates. Adequacy and safety of parenteral nutrition support are amongst the major concerns of neonates' therapy. Parenteral nutrition prescription in Greek hospitals is not based on standardized protocols, thus resulting in wide diversity of formulations. In this study, the results of utilization of standardized computerized parenteral nutrition protocols and regimens for neonates are compared to the results of protocols and regimens prescribed by individual neonatologists on neonates' outcome (weight changes, adequacy of parenteral nutrition, days of hospitalization, clinical outcome). SETTING: The study took place at "Mitera" Maternity Hospital of Greece. METHOD: Two groups of 30 preterm infants (28-36 weeks) with respiratory failure were recruited for the study. They were admitted in a Greek maternity hospital and they all received total parenteral nutrition support in neonates' intensive care unit. Standardized, computer based protocols were applied for the prescription of parenteral nutrition formulations in the first group, while on the other, regimens prescribed by neonatologists were used. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Macro- and micronutrients provided by the different total parenteral nutrition protocols were recorded. Body weight was measured, blood count and biochemical profile were performed at the beginning and at the end of parenteral nutrition support. The number of days of total parenteral nutrition support as well as the total number of days of hospitalization was recorded. RESULTS: Standardized protocols provided more energy (P-value: 0.05), protein (P-value: 0.023) and micronutrients than the non-standardised. Neonates that receive standardized total parenteral nutrition gained weight (+44 +/- 114 g) and had better blood count and biochemical values during total parenteral nutrition support compared to the other group, that lost weight during total parenteral nutrition support (-53 +/- 156 g). These differences were also statistically significant (P value < 0.05). Regarding the total days of hospitalization, no differences were found between the two groups. CONCLUSION: The use of standardized protocols in preterm neonates resulted in more adequate provision of nutrients, weight gain and better blood count profile compared with protocols prescribed by individual physicians.