Amino Acid-Based Enteral Nutrition Enhances Postoperative Recovery in Colorectal Cancer Patients: A Randomized...

Area of Science:

• Clinical Nutrition
• Surgical Oncology
• Gastroenterology

Background:

• Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) protocols optimize patient outcomes.
• Nutritional status is critical for recovery after major surgery, especially in cancer patients.
• Enteral nutrition formulas vary in composition and potential efficacy.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of an amino acid-based enteral nutrition (AAEN) formula.
• To compare AAEN with short-peptide-based (SP) and conventional nutrition (CON) within an ERAS protocol.
• To assess the impact of AAEN on nutritional status, recovery, complications, and inflammatory markers in colorectal cancer surgery patients.

Main Methods:

• A randomized controlled trial involving 60 colorectal cancer surgery patients.
• Patients were allocated to three groups: AAEN (n=20), SP (n=20), or CON (n=20).
• Primary outcomes included nutritional status (serum albumin, prealbumin), recovery indicators (time to first flatus), complications, and inflammatory markers.

Main Results:

• The AAEN group showed significantly higher serum albumin and prealbumin on postoperative day 7 compared to SP and CON groups (p<0.01).
• Time to first flatus was significantly shorter in the AAEN group (38.2±5.8 h) versus SP (43.5±6.9 h) and CON (52.1±7.8 h) (p<0.01).
• The AAEN group experienced a shorter hospital stay (7.6±1.3 days), a lower complication rate (15.0%), and more favorable inflammatory and immune markers (p<0.01).

Conclusions:

• Perioperative AAEN significantly enhances recovery in colorectal cancer surgery patients.
• AAEN improves nutritional status, reduces postoperative complications, and modulates inflammatory and immune responses.
• AAEN is a preferred nutritional strategy for integration into ERAS protocols for enhanced surgical recovery.