The therapeutic advantages of a balanced nutritional support system

Twenty-two critically ill patients were entered into a 21-day prospective study to evaluate the feasibility of relying on a balanced nutritional support system to satisfy the needs of a diverse group of surgical patients. No patient sustained a serious complication related to glucose metabolism, and only two patients required insulin. Twenty-one of the patients achieved positive nitrogen balance during the study, and 13 had a significant weight gain not related to water retention. Documented sepsis was present in 50% of the patients but in spite of this, 91% had a successful course of therapy. The ease of management and metabolic efficiency of this approach encourages the use of fat as a primary energy substrate in a balanced nutritional support system to restore positive energy and nitrogen balance.