A multi-centre retrospective cohort study exploring weight loss and nutritional interventions in severe acute pancreatitis

Abstract Background Acute pancreatitis is among the most common acute gastrointestinal diseases. Severe acute pancreatitis (SAP) develops in up to 20% of patients and is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Patients may have long and complex hospital admissions; nutritional support is a cornerstone of management. Due to increased metabolic demands and development of pancreatic exocrine insufficiency (PEI) patients frequently endure excessive weight loss. There has been little research into the effect of SAP on nutritional status and necessary nutritional interventions. This project aimed to characterise weight loss in SAP, routes of feeding, and PEI - including pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy (PERT). Methods Participating centres were recruited via the Nutrition Interest group of PSGBI and were required to retrospectively recruit 5-10 consecutive patients admitted following January 1st 2018 using a predefined data collection tool. Inclusion criteria included; age ≥18 years and diagnosed SAP of any aetiology (defined by organ failure of > 48hrs). The exclusion criterion was where death occurred during hospital admission. Data were collected regarding, weight changes, anthropometric measures, nutritional interventions used, PERT administration and diabetic status, including insulin use. All analyses were performed with IBM SPSS 22 (IBM Corp. Armonk, NY), with p < 0.05 considered statistically significant. Results 34 patients (22 male) from five centres met the inclusion criteria and were included in data analysis. Most common aetiologies were gallstones (13/34) and alcohol (11/34). A mean weight reduction of 12.6% (SD ± 10.77) (p < 0.001) was observed. Multivariate analyses showed that higher premorbid weight (p = 0.02) and PERT administration with tube feeding (p = 0.005) were associated with weight loss. Most patients (29/34) received tube feeding; mean duration 56.8 (SD ± 58.29) days. There was a significant increase in patients with diabetes requiring insulin therapy from admission (n = 3) to discharge (n = 9) (p = 0.03). Most (29/31) patients required oral PERT prescription on discharge. Conclusions Patients with SAP lost significant weight during the course of their illness despite aggressive, extended nutritional support and the correction of PEI with PERT. The significant increase in insulin dependence among patients with diabetes, and the number of patients requiring PERT on discharge, reflects the destructive effect SAP has on pancreatic function. These multicentre findings could be used as a baseline for determining effectiveness of nutritional interventions in SAP and may provide a basis for further prospective research in this area.