Determining energy and protein needs in critically ill pediatric patients: A scoping review

INTRODUCTION

In critically ill pediatric patients, optimal energy and protein intakes are associated with a decreased risk of morbidity and mortality. However, the determination of energy and protein needs is complex. The objective of this scoping review was to understand the extent and type of evidence related to the methods used to determine energy and protein needs in critically ill pediatric patients.

METHODS

An international expert group composed of dietitians, pediatric intensivists, a nurse, and a methodologist conducted the review, based on the Johanna Briggs Institute methodology. Two researchers searched for studies published between 2008 and 2023 in two electronic databases, screened abstracts and relevant full texts for eligibility, and extracted data.

RESULTS

A total of 39 studies were included, mostly conducted in critically ill children undergoing ventilation, to assess the accuracy of predictive equations for estimating resting energy expenditure (REE) (n = 16, 41%) and the impact of clinical factors (n = 22, 56%). They confirmed the risk of underestimation or overestimation of REE when using predictive equations, of which the Schofield equation was the least inaccurate. Apart from weight and age, which were positively correlated with REE, the impact of other factors was not always consistent. No new indirect calorimeter method used to determine protein needs has been validated.

CONCLUSION

This scoping review highlights the need for scientific data on the methods used to measure energy expenditure and determine protein needs in critically ill children. Studies using a reference method are needed to validate an indirect calorimeter.

F.I.GU.R.E.: facial idiopathic granulomas with regressive evolution. is 'lupus miliaris disseminatus faciei' still an acceptable diagnosis in the third millennium?

We report the case of a 69-year-old woman who presented a papular eruption on the eyelids. Histological features revealed a tuberculoid granuloma with a central caseating necrosis. Laboratory and radiological investigations revealed no tuberculosis and no systemic granulomatosis. Absence of vascular symptoms, inefficiency of cyclines and histopathological findings excluded granulomatous-type rosacea. Lupus miliaris disseminatus faciei (LMDF) was our final diagnosis. On the basis of our findings and a literature review, we believe that LMDF is an entity distinct from either skin tuberculosis or granulomatous-type rosacea. However, its name is confusing, and we propose to change it to 'facial idiopathic granulomas with regressive evolution (FIGURE)'.