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Background: Overfeeding can lead to multiple metabolic and clinical complications and has been associated with increased mortality in the critically ill. Continuous venovenous hemofiltration (CVVH) represents a potential source of calories that is poorly recognized and may contribute to overfeeding complications. Objective: We aimed to quantify the systemic caloric contribution of acid-citrate-dextrose regional anticoagulation and dextrosecontaining replacement fluids in the CVVH circuit. Design: This was a prospective study in 10 critically ill adult patients who received CVVH from April 2014 to June 2014. Serial pre-and postfilter blood samples (n = 4 each) were drawn and analyzed for glucose and citrate concentrations on each of 2 consecutive days. Results: Participants included 5 men and 5 women with a mean 6 SEM age of 61 6 4 y (range: 42-84 y) and body mass index (in kg/m 2 ) of 28 6 2 (range: 18.3-36.2). There was generally good agreement between data on the 2 study days (CV: 7-11%). Mean 6 SEM pre-and postfilter venous plasma glucose concentrations in the aggregate group were 152 6 10 and 178 6 9 mg/dL, respectively. Net glucose uptake from the CVVH circuit was 54 6 5 mg/min and provided 295 6 28 kcal/d. Prefilter plasma glucose concentrations were higher in patients with diabetes (n = 5) than in those without diabetes (168 6 12 compared with 140 6 14 mg/dL; P , 0.05); however, net glucose uptake was similar (46 6 8 compared with 61 6 6 mg/min; P = 0.15). Mean 6 SEM pre-and postfilter venous plasma citrate concentrations were 1 6 0.1 and 3.1 6 0.2 mmol/L, respectively. Net citrate uptake from the CVVH circuit was 60 6 2 mg/min and provided 218 6 8 kcal/d. Conclusions: During CVVH there was a substantial net uptake of both glucose and citrate that delivered exogenous energy and provided w512 kcal/d. Failure to account for this source of calories in critically ill patients receiving nutrition on CVVH may result in overfeeding.

Background Reliable and valid tools to screen for malnutrition in the intensive care unit (ICU) remain elusive. The sarcopenia index (SI) [(serum creatinine/serum cystatin C) × 100], could be an inexpensive, objective tool to predict malnutrition. We evaluated the SI as a screening tool for malnutrition in the ICU and compared it with the modified‐NUTRIC score. Materials and Methods This was a historical cohort study of ICU patients with stable kidney function admitted to Mayo Clinic ICUs between 2008 and 2015. Malnutrition was defined by the Subjective Global Assessment. Diagnostic performance was evaluated with the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) and multivariable logistic regression. Results Of the 398 included patients, 181 (45%) had malnutrition, with 34 (9%) scored as severely malnourished. The SI was significantly lower in malnourished patients than in well‐nourished patients (64 ± 27 vs 72 ± 25; P = 0.002), and reductions in SI corresponded to increased malnutrition severity (P = 0.001). As a screening tool, the SI was an indicator of malnutrition risk (AUC 0.61) and performed slightly better than the more complex modified‐NUTRIC score (AUC = 0.57). SI cutoffs of 101 and 43 had >90% sensitivity and >90% specificity, respectively, for the prediction of malnutrition. Patients with a low SI (≤43) had a significantly higher risk of mortality (HR = 2.61, 95% CI 1.06–6.48, P = 0.038). Conclusion The frequency of malnutrition was high in this critically ill population, and it was associated with a poor prognosis. The SI could be used to assess nutrition risk in ICU patients.

Despite the high prevalence of malnutrition in adult hospitalized patients, surveys continue to report that many clinicians are undertrained in clinical nutrition, making targeted nutrition education for clinicians essential for best patient care. Clinical practice models also continue to evolve, with more disciplines prescribing parenteral nutrition (PN) or managing the cases of patients who are receiving it, further adding to the need for proficiency in general PN skills. This tutorial focuses on the daily management of adult hospitalized patients already receiving PN and reviews the following topics: (1) PN basics, including the determination of energy and volume requirements; (2) PN macronutrient content (protein, dextrose, and intravenous fat emulsion); (3) PN micronutrient content (electrolytes, minerals, vitamins, and trace elements); (4) alteration of PN for special situations, such as obesity, hyperglycemia, hypertriglyceridemia, refeeding, and hepatic/renal disease; (5) daily monitoring and adjustment of PN formula; and (6) PN-related complications (PN-associated liver disease and catheter-related complications).