Enteral/Oral Glutamine Supplementation in Patients Following Abdominal Surgery

The objective of this investigation was to study the effect of enteral/oral glutamine supplementation in patients following abdominal surgery on plasma glutamine levels, rate of infection and Length Of Hospitalization (LOS). A randomized control trial was used and the patients were randomly divided into two groups namely experimental and control with 15 participants each. Glutamine supplement (0.5g/kg) was administered (oral and enteral) to the experimental group for a period of 5 days postsurgery immediately after the feeding began. In both the feeding groups the plasma glutamine levels were analyzed spectrophotometrically using a glutamine determination kit on day 1 following surgery and day 6 (post 5 days of feeding). For statistical analysis t test and Chi square test were used. The study was carried out in Topiwala National Medical College and BYL Nair Hospital, Mumbai, India. There was a significant difference in the baseline plasma glutamine levels in both the groups (p<0.05). And on day 6 the plasma glutamine analysis revealed significant higher levels in the experimental group as compared to the control group. The incidence of infection in the control group was found to be almost twice that in the experimental group considering the role of glutamine in combating infection. Also the length of hospitalization was found to be slightly higher in the control group as compared to the experimental group. The present study has provided evidence that the supplementation of enteral glutamine in post-operative patients decreases the incidence of post-surgical infection, shortening of hospital stay and reduction in the overall hospital costs.