Journal of neurosurgery
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Journal of neurosurgery · Nov 1987
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical TrialThe effect of nutritional support on outcome from severe head injury.
Fifty-one brain-injured patients with peak 24-hour admission Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) scores of 4 to 10 were prospectively randomly assigned to receive total parenteral (TPN) or enteral (EN) nutrition. Patients were studied from hospital admission to 18 days postinjury. Outcome was assessed by the Glasgow Outcome Scale at 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year postinjury. ⋯ In conclusion, more calories and protein usually can be administered to acute brain injury patients via the TPN route than by EN feedings via nasogastric or nasoduodenal routes. Traditional parameters for nutritional assessment are not useful in studying the efficacy of nutritional support during the first 2 weeks after head injury. Neurological recovery from head injury occurs more rapidly in patients with better early nutritional support.