Clinical nutrition practice in Italian Gastroenterology Units

Proton pump inhibitor use before percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy is associated with adverse outcomes

BACKGROUND/AIMS

Knowledge of the risk factors associated with adverse outcomes after percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) may be helpful for developing PEG recommendations. The purpose of this study was to identify the clinical risk factors associated with adverse clinical outcomes after PEG, especially regarding the use of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs).

METHODS

We retrospectively reviewed the data from PEG patients at seven university hospitals between June 2006 and January 2012. All patients were followed up through February 2012 after PEG, and the clinical risk factors for adverse clinical outcomes after PEG were analyzed.

RESULTS

Data from 1,021 PEG patients were analyzed. PPI users were more frequently included in the complication group than the noncomplication group (p=0.040). PEG-related complications (p=0.040) and mortality (p=0.003) were more frequent in the PPI group than in the control group. In the subgroup analysis of complicated PEG cases, infectious complications were more frequently found in the PPI group than in the control group (35.8% vs 27.8%). After adjustment for multiple possible confounding factors, PPI users (odds ratio, 1.531; 95% confidence interval, 1.017 to 2.305) and diabetic patients had increased mortality after PEG.

CONCLUSIONS

PPI use may be associated with adverse outcomes in patients with PEG; however, further prospective studies investigating this issue are warranted.

Nutritional aspects in patients with functional gastrointestinal disorders and motor dysfunction in the gut. Working team report of the Swedish Motility Group (SMoG)

In reviews regarding the management of patients with functional gastrointestinal disorders and motility disturbances within the gut nutritional aspects and dietary advice is often put forward as being of great importance. However, there are relatively few high-quality, interventional studies in the literature supporting an important role for general dietary advice to improve symptoms in these patients. Nutritional supplementation to patients with malnutrition due to severe dysfunction of the gastrointestinal tract is of course less controversial, even though different views on how this should be performed exist. The content of this article is based on presentations given by the authors during the second meeting of the Swedish Motility Group held in Gothenburg in March 2005, and aims to give an overview on the role of dietary advice and nutritional supplementation to patients with gastrointestinal dysfunction of different severity.

Survival rate and prognostic factors in patients with intestinal failure

BACKGROUND

Intestinal failure impairs nutritional status and survival expectance. Though intestinal adaptation and enteral independence may be achieved, artificial nutrition is needed in about half of the patients.

AIMS

This study is aimed at assessing the causes of death, survival rate, enteral independence in time, and factors affecting the clinical outcome in a group of patients with intestinal insufficiency.

PATIENTS

Sixty-eight patients with intestinal insufficiency, due to major intestinal resection in 60 cases (short bowel syndrome) (remnant intestine length 101-150 cm in 31 cases, 50-100 cm in 23 cases, <50 cm in 6 cases), and due to chronic idiopathic pseudo-obstruction in 8 cases, were enrolled and followed-up for (median) 36 months (25th and 75th percentile in 12 and 60 months, respectively). In 60 short bowel syndrome patients, the main conditions that led to intestinal failure were ischemic bowel (28), major surgery complications or severe adhesions (17), radiation enteritis (10), Chron's disease, intestinal tuberculosis, small bowel lymphoma and trauma (others).

METHODS

Seventeen variables age, underlying disorders, length of remnant bowel, type of surgery, hospital stay, type of nutrition (hospital and home) and its variations in time, causes of death, survival rate and time were considered. Statistical analysis was carried out by Mann-Whitney U-test, Pearson chi2, Spearman correlation test, Kaplan-Meyer method and Cox's proportion hazards regression model.

RESULTS

At the time of admission to the hospital, none of the patients had nutritional independence, 54 (79.4%) were on parenteral nutrition and 14 (20.6%) were on enteral nutrition. At the time of discharge, 23 (33.8%) patients showed enteral independence, 39 were on home parenteral nutrition, 3 on enteral nutrition + i.v. feeding, 1 on enteral nutrition, and 2 needed oral supplementation with hydroelectrolyte solutions only. After a median value of 36 months, 30 and 2 patients were on home parenteral nutrition and enteral nutrition + i.v. feeding, respectively, 2 on enteral nutrition, 2 on oral supplementation with hydroelectrolyte solutions, and 26 cases reached enteral independence. A significant relationship was detected between the length of remnant bowel and types of nutrition at both admission (r = 0.38; P = 0.001) and discharge (r = 0.48; P = 0.001), parenteral nutrition being more frequent in patients with very short bowel. Twenty-two patients (32.4%) died (4 from newly occurring malignancies), 40 (58.8%) survived, and 6 (8.8%) were lost to the follow-up. Eleven of 22 patients died from conditions related to intestinal failure (8 cases) and/or home parenteral nutrition complications (3 cases). At 12, 24, 36, 48, 60 and 72 months, survival rates were 95.4, 93.3, 88.1, 78.6, 78.6 and 65.5%, respectively, but it was significantly lower for patients with <50 cm of remnant bowel than those with longer residual intestine (P < 0.05), and in patients who started home parenteral nutrition above the age of 45 years (P < 0.02). Survival rate was higher in patients with enteral independence than those with enteral dependence (P < 0.05). Better survival rates were registered in patients with chronic obstructive intestinal pseudo-obstruction and major surgery complications, whereas ischemic bowel and even more radiation enteritis were associated with a lower survival expectance.

CONCLUSIONS

Actuarial survival rate of patients with intestinal failure quotes 88 and 78% at 3 and 5 years, respectively. It is influenced by the length of remnant intestine, age at the start of home parenteral nutrition, enteral independence and, to some extent at least, by the primary disorder. Enteral independence can be achieved in time by about 40% of the patients with intestinal insufficiency, but for home parenteral nutrition-dependent cases, intravenous feeding can be stopped in less than one out of five patients during a median 3-year period.

Mortality and economics in short bowel syndrome

The incidence of patients with short-bowel syndrome (SBS) has increased over the years due to progress of intensive care medicine and parenteral nutrition techniques. These techniques have significantly improved the prognosis of neonates, children and adults who have lost major parts of their intestinal tract. Long-term survival is possible and does not depend primarily on the length of the remaining bowel but on complications such as parenteral nutrition-associated cholestasis, recurrent septicaemia, central venous catheter infections, and the motility of the remaining intestine. Thus, the overall related mortality in infants with SBS ranges from 15 to 25%, and in adults from 15 to 47%, depending on the age of the patients, the underlying disease, and the duration on total parenteral nutrition. Home parenteral nutrition (HPN) significantly decreases the complication rate and improves the psychological situation of the patient. Additionally, HPN reduces in-hospital cost significantly. Nevertheless, the annual costs/patient are between $100000 and $150000. The mortality rate of SBS patients on HPN is about 30% after 5 years, which is still lower than the 5-year survival rate of intestinal grafts, and it is about equal to patients' survival after intestinal transplantation. However, the overall costs of a successful intestinal transplantation are already lower after 2 years when compared with the cost of a prolonged HPN programme.