ABSTRACT
Objective:
To investigate the energy and protein adequacies of intensive care unit of a university hospital patients in exclusive enteral nutrition.
Methods:
This longitudinal study was conducted between April and November 2014 in the adult intensive care unit of a university hospital. The following items were assessed during 14 days: percentage of protein energy adequacy, based on the mean prescribed and administered values; clinical conditions (unit and diagnosis on admission, Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II, nutritional status, and length of stay); gastrointestinal complications; and reason for diet interruption. Values below 80% of the caloric and protein adequacies were considered inadequate. Multivariate analysis was performed by Poisson Regression at a significance level of 5%.
Results:
The sample consisted of 38 patients, and 52.63% were undernourished. The mean caloric and protein adequacies were 76.47% and 69.11%, respectively. The prevalences of caloric and protein inadequacies were 55.26% and 68.42%, respectively. Fasting for procedures was the most frequent cause for diet interruption. Residual gastric volume and diarrhea were the most common gastrointestinal complications. Caloric inadequacy was associated with length of stay ≤14 days and high residual gastric volume. Protein inadequacy was associated with length of stay ≤14 days, high residual gastric volume, and catheter displacement or obstruction.
Conclusion:
More than half of the patients had caloric and protein inadequacies. Strategies, such as the development of protocols for multidisciplinary teams, should be created to minimize disruption of the administered diet, establish measures to control gastrointestinal complications, and thus ensure adequate nutritional intake during intensive care unit stay.
Keywords:
Critical care; Energy intake; Energy requirement; Enteral nutrition; Nutrition therapy
