Frontiers in medicine
Clinical impact of early enteral nutrition support on gastrointestinal function, nutritional status, liver function, and immune function in liver cancer patients
By Lu S, Liu J, Ding Y and 6 others.
Abstract
Objective
This randomized controlled trial aimed to evaluate the clinical impact of early enteral nutrition (EEN) on postoperative gastrointestinal function, nutritional status, liver function, and immune function in primary liver cancer patients.
Methods
A total of 80 patients treated between December 2022 and December 2023 were randomly assigned to two groups: experimental group (EEN, n = 40) and control group (total parenteral nutrition, TPN, n = 40). Both groups received isocaloric and isonitrogenous nutritional support after surgery. The primary outcome was the change in serum albumin (ALB) levels from baseline to postoperative day 7. Secondary outcomes included gastrointestinal recovery markers, nutritional markers [diamine oxidase (DAO) and prealbumin (PA)], liver function markers [cholinesterase (ChE), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT)], immune markers (CD4+, CD8+, and the CD4+/CD8+ ratio), adverse reactions, and exploratory clinical outcomes (length of hospital stay, infection rate, mortality, readmission rate, and postoperative liver failure). Data were analyzed using repeated measures ANOVA for longitudinal outcomes, with effect sizes (partial η2, Cohen's d) and 95% confidence intervals.
