Early enteral nutrition reduces mortality in trauma patients requiring intensive care: a meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials.
BACKGROUND
To determine whether the provision of early standard enteral nutrition (EN) confers treatment benefits to adult trauma patients who require intensive care.


METHODS
MEDLINE and EMBASE were searched. Hand citation review of retrieved guidelines and systematic reviews was undertaken and academic and industry experts were contacted. Methodologically sound randomised controlled trials (RCTs) conducted in adult trauma patients requiring intensive care that compared the delivery of standard EN, provided within 24 h of injury, to standard care were included.The primary analysis was conducted on clinically meaningful patient-oriented outcomes, which included mortality, functional status and quality of life. Secondary analyses considered vomiting/regurgitation, pneumonia, bacteraemia, sepsis and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome. Meta-analysis was conducted using an analytical method known to minimise bias in the presence of sparse events. The impact of heterogeneity was assessed using the I2 metric.


RESULTS
Three RCTs with 126 participants were found to be free from major flaws and were included in the primary analysis. The provision of early EN was associated with a significant reduction in mortality(OR = 0.20, 95% confidence interval 0.04–0.91, I2 = 0). No other outcomes could be pooled. A sensitivity analysis and a confirmatory analysis conducted using a different analytical method confirmed the presence of a mortality reduction.


CONCLUSIONS
Although the detection of a statistically significant reduction in mortality is promising,overall trial quality was low and trial size was small. The results of this meta-analysis should be confirmed by the conduct of a large multi-center trial.
Doig
Gordon S
GS
Intensive Care, Northern Clinical School, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia. GDoig@med.usyd.edu.au
Heighes
Philippa T
PT
Simpson
Fiona
F
Sweetman
Elizabeth A
EA
D003422:Critical Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D016638:Critical Illness / Q000401:mortality*; D004750:Enteral Nutrition / Q000401:mortality*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011788:Quality of Life; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000401:mortality*