Gastrointestinal hormones and short-term nutritional schedules in critically ill patients

The purpose of the study is to evaluate the gastrointestinal hormone response in critically ill patients under different nutritional schedule (enteral vs. total parenteral) of short duration.

Twenty-one sedated and mechanically ventilated patients were nourished with continuous nasogastric schedule (Group A, 11 patients), or with total parenteral nutrition (Group B, 10 patients). Serum concentrations of gastrin, cholecystokinin, vasoactive intestinal peptide, neurotensin, and bombesin, were measured on the 2nd, 3rd and the 5th day of patients' admission, with radioimmunoassay methods.

Changes of hormones concentrations were not significant either between the three measurements in each group or between the two groups at the same hospitalization day.

The short-term parenteral nutrition in critically ill patients does not exert a different influence on the serum concentrations of gastrin, cholecystokinin, vasoactive intestinal peptide, neurotensin, and bombesin, compared to enteral nutrition. This conclusion is of clinical interest since the short-term administration of total parenteral nutrition is very often necessary during hospitalization in the intensive care unit.