Thiamine is an essential micronutrient for energy metabolism. Thiamine deficiency is frequently observed in critically ill patients. However, the effect of thiamine administration is unclear in critically ill patients.
We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis. To identify randomized controlled trials on the effect of thiamine administration in critically ill patients, a literature search was conducted in MEDLINE, CENTRAL, and ICHUSHI databases from inception to April 2023. Pooled effect estimates were calculated about mortality as the primary outcome and shock duration, lactate level, Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score, delirium, length of mechanical ventilation, length of intensive care unit (ICU) stay, infection rate, all adverse events, and Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) as the secondary outcomes. The certainty of evidence (CoE) was assessed using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation approach.
Overall, 35 studies (3494 patients) were included. Evidence suggested that thiamine administration resulted in little to no difference in mortality (risk ratio [RR], 0.89; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.75 to 1.06; Low CoE); however, thiamine administration may reduce shock duration (mean difference [MD], −11.43 h; 95% CI, −20.16 to −2.69 h; Low CoE), lactate level (MD, −0.34 mmol/L; 95% CI, −0.63 to −0.05 mmol/L; Low CoE), and SOFA score (MD, −1.29; 95% CI, −1.91 to −0.66; Low CoE). Conversely, thiamine administration resulted in a slight increase in the length of ICU stay (MD, 0.40 days; 95% CI, 0.01–0.79 days; High CoE).
Although thiamine administration may reduce shock state, it may not reduce mortality, and slightly increases the length of ICU stay.
It is plausible that supplementation with specific amino acids or metabolites could attenuate skeletal muscle wasting during critical illness. The aim of this systematic review was to explore if amino acids or their derivatives impact skeletal muscle wastage in critically ill adults.
Four databases were systematically searched to identify randomised control trials which delivered enteral supplemental amino acids, or their metabolites compared with placebo, standard care or no intervention, to critically ill patients and reported outcomes of skeletal muscle mass, plasma amino acids, nitrogen balance, or muscle strength. Two authors independently completed screening, data extraction, and risk of bias assessment using the Cochrane Risk of Bias 2 Tool. A meta-analysis was planned but heterogeneity in the type of intervention used and outcome assessment precluded this. Therefore, data were synthesised using vote counting.
Thirty randomised control trials, comprising 1976 patients were included. The most frequently studied interventional amino acid or metabolite was glutamine (n = 12 trials), a combination (n = 9), arginine (n = 6), β-hydroxy β-methylbutyrate (HMB) (n = 2) or ornithine (n = 1). Six trials (including 284 participants) measured skeletal muscle following supplementation, four of which used HMB alone or in combination as the intervention. Of these, one trial observed an attenuation of muscle wasting with a combination of amino acids, one observed an exacerbation of muscle wasting with HMB, three trials observed no impact on muscle wasting with HMB or a combination of amino acids and one trial reported no information.
Six trials have investigated the effect of enteral amino acid or amino acid metabolite supplementation on muscle mass in critically ill. Heterogeneity of interventions, outcome assessments and direction of effects limits the certainty regarding the effect of supplemental amino acids, or their metabolites, on skeletal muscle wasting during critical illness.
The trial protocol is registered on PROSPERO (CRD42021275989).
Plant-rich dietary patterns may protect against negative health outcomes among individuals with chronic kidney disease (CKD), although aspects of plant-based diet quality have not been studied. This study aimed to examine associations between healthful and unhealthful plant-based dietary patterns with risk of all-cause mortality among CKD patients for the first time.
This prospective analysis included 4807 UK Biobank participants with CKD at baseline. We examined associations of adherence to both the healthful plant-based diet index (hPDI) and unhealthful plant-based diet index (uPDI), calculated from repeated 24-h dietary assessments, with risk of all-cause mortality using multivariable Cox proportional hazard regression models.
Over a 10-year follow-up, 675 deaths were recorded. Participants with the highest hPDI scores showed a 34% lower risk of mortality [HRQ4vsQ1 (95% CI): 0.66 (0.52–0.83), ptrend <0.001]. Those with the highest uPDI scores had a 52% [1.52 (1.20–1.93), ptrend = 0.002] higher risk of mortality compared to participants with the lowest respective scores. In food group-specific analyses, higher wholegrain intakes were associated with a 29% lower mortality risk, while intakes of refined grains, and sugar-sweetened beverages were associated a 30% and 34% higher risk, respectively.
In CKD patients, a higher intake of healthy plant-based foods was associated with a lower risk of mortality, while a higher intake of less healthy plant-based foods was associated with a higher risk of mortality. These results underscore the importance of plant food quality and support the potential role of healthy plant food consumption in the treatment and management of CKD to mitigate unfavourable outcomes.
High-fat, low-carbohydrate enteral nutrition has gained attention, with expectations of an improved respiratory condition, fewer complications, and lower mortality. The present study performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials to examine the effects of high-fat, low-carbohydrate enteral nutrition in critically ill adult patients.
We searched MEDLINE via Pubmed, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), and ICHUSHI for randomized controlled trials comparing high-fat, low-carbohydrate enteral nutrition to standard enteral nutrition in critically ill adult patients who received enteral nutrition. The primary outcome was mortality. Secondary outcomes included intensive care unit (ICU) mortality, length of ICU stay, length of mechanical ventilation, and adverse events of diarrhea and gastric residual volume. We examined the risk of bias using the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomized trials version 2. We assessed the overall certainty of evidence based on the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation methodology. Synthesis results were calculated with risk ratios and 95% confidence intervals using a Mantel-Haenszel random-effects model.
Eight trials with 607 patients were included. The effects of high-fat, low-carbohydrate enteral nutrition on mortality did not significantly differ from those of standard enteral nutrition (62/280 [22.1%] vs. 39/207 [18.8%], risk ratios = 1.14, 95% confidence intervals 0.80 to 1.62, P = 0.47). No significant differences were observed in ICU mortality, ICU length of stay, diarrhea, or gastric residual volume between the two groups. However, high-fat, low-carbohydrate enteral nutrition was associated with a significantly shorter duration of mechanical ventilation (mean difference −1.72 days, 95% confidence intervals −2.93 to −0.50, P = 0.005).
High-fat, low-carbohydrate enteral nutrition may not affect mortality, but may decrease the duration of mechanical ventilation in critically ill adult patients. Limitations include the small number of studies and potential for bias. Further research is needed to confirm these results and investigate effects on other outcomes and in a subgroup of patients requiring mechanical ventilation.
Undernutrition may negatively impact cognitive function, but evidence of this relationship is not yet consolidated. Under the “PROtein enriched MEDiterranean diet to combat undernutrition and promote healthy neuroCOGnitive ageing” (PROMED-COG) project, we evaluated the association between undernutrition, and cognitive decline and incident dementia in older adults.
Retrospective data harmonization was performed on three Italian population-based studies: the Italian Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ILSA), the Progetto Veneto Anziani (Pro.V.A.), and the Bollate Eye Study-Follow-Up (BEST-FU). The associations between undernutrition, operationalized using the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM) criteria, and decline on the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) or dementia incidence follow-up were evaluated with Cox proportional hazard regression models.
The pooled cohort comprised 9071 individuals (52% females) aged between 42 and 101 years. The prevalence of undernutrition at the baseline was 14.3%, significantly higher among females (15.4% vs 13%) and in older age, ranging from 3.5% in those aged <60 years to 28.8% in those 85+ years. Undernutrition was associated with both cognitive decline over a median 8.3-year follow-up (Hazard Ratio (HR) 1.20, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) 1.02–1.41, p = 0.028) and incidence of dementia over a median 8.6-year follow-up (HR = 1.57, 95%CI 1.01–2.43, p = 0.046). For cognitive decline, the association with undernutrition was more marked in males than females (HR = 1.36, 95%CI 1.05–1.77, p = 0.019 vs HR = 1.10, 95% CI 0.89–1.36, p = 0.375).
Undernutrition is prevalent among older people and is associated with an increased risk of experiencing cognitive decline and dementia. The prevention and early identification of undernutrition could be an important nonpharmacologic strategy to counteract neurodegeneration.