Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of enteral immunonutrition for patients with acute pancreatitis. Methods The randomized controlled trials (RCTs) about enteral immunonutrition for patients with acute pancreatitis were searched in following databases: PubMed (1966 to August 2012), MEDLINE (Ovid, 1946 to August 2012), CENTRAL (Issue 3, 2012), CBM (1978 to August 2012), CNKI (1979 August 2012), VIP (1989 to August 2012), and WanFang Data (1977 to August 2012). The relevant materials and each reference of literature were also searched manually. Two reviewers independently screened the literature according to the predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria, extracted the data and assessed the quality, and then the meta-analysis was conducted by using RevMan 5.0 software. Results A total of 6 RCTs involving 197 patients were included. The results of meta-analysis showed that there were no significant differences between the enteral immunonutrition group and the routine enteral nutrition group in following aspects: infectious complications and mortality rate, length of stay, level of C-reactive protein and numeration of leucocyte after treatment, and APACHE II score. Conclusion At present, no evidence shows enteral immunutrition is superior to routine enteral nutrition in acute pancreatitis. For the quantity and quality limitation of the included studies, more high-quality and large-sample RCTs are required to investigate the proper ingredients and dosage of enteral immunonutrition suitable for patients with acute pancreatitis.
Objective To systematically review the effects of enteral immunonutrition (EIN) on postoperative infection and the length of hospital stay in patients with gastrointestinal cancer after surgery, in order to provide high quality evidence for the rational perioperation nutrition plan for patients with malignant gastrointestinal tumor. Methods Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published in English about application of EIN vs. general treatment for gastrointestinal surgery published from Jan. 1st, 1997 to Oct. 31st 2012 were retrieved in the following databases: PubMed, Ovid, and EMbase. References of the included studies were also retrieved. According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, two reviewers independently screened studies, extracted data, and evaluated the methodological quality. Then, meta-analysis was conducted using RevMan 5.2 software. Results 19 RCTs involving 2 298 patients were included. The results of meta-analysis showed that: there was no significant difference between the postoperative EIN group and the control group in reducing the risk of postoperative infection (OR=0.91, 95%CI 0.56 to 1.47, P=0.70); But postoperative and perioperative EIN had reduced the risk of postoperative infection with a significant difference (OR=0.57, 95%CI 0.39 to 0.82, P=0.002; OR=0.52, 95%CI 0.35 to 0.76, P=0.000 9). Additionally, the results of sensitivity analysis revealed that: no matter when EIN was used (during preoperative, postoperative, or perioperative periods), it reduced the length of postoperative hospital stay with significant differences, compared to the standard nutrition group (OR= −2.39, 95%CI −3.28 to −1.49, Plt;0.000 01; OR= −2.42, 95%CI −4.07 to −0.78, P=0.004; OR= −2.76, 95%CI −3.46 to −2.06, Plt;0.000 01). Conclusion Current evidence shows that perioperative EIN can decrease postoperative infection and reduce the length of hospital stay of patients with malignant gastrointestinal tumor. Due to the limited quantity and quality of the included studies, high quality RCTs are needed to verify the above conclusion.
Objective To study the effects and mechanisms of major immune nutrients and to introduce the progresses of clinical applications about enteral immunonutrition. Methods The related literatures about the effects and clinical applications of enteral immunonutrition were reviewed. Results Infection rate can be reduced and the hospitalization can be shortened as a result of the improved nutritional status and immune competence of patients which can be enhanced by reasonable enteral immune nutrition. Most of the patients suffering from serious diseases can benefit from enteral immunonutrition, such as gastrointestinal cancers, post-transplantation complications, chronic liver disorders, acute pancreatitis and so on. However, as a new nutrition therapy, the clinical use of enteral immunonutrition in critically ill patients is still controversial. Conclusions Enteral immunonutrition plays an important role in the nutritional support of patients with serious diseases, such as gastrointestinal cancers, organ failures. However, much work remains to be done.