[Place of biomarkers in the renutrition of patients with serious Covid-19 infection: discussion around a clinical case]. / Place des biomarqueurs dans la renutrition des patients ayant une infection grave à Covid-19 : discussion autour d'un cas clinique.

Covid-19 infection is a potentially serious disease. Overweight, obesity, and diabetes are comorbidities frequently found in the severe form of the disease. Appropriate nutritional management of the patient is an integral part of care. We will discuss the renutrition of a 76-year-old, obese (BMI = 35kg/m2), malnourished patient, according to the 2021 Haute Autorité de santé criteria, with Covid-19 infection, admitted to the intensive care unit at the Bordeaux University Hospital for an acute respiratory distress syndrome. Adaptation of nutritional intakes was achieved by clinical and biological monitoring. A refeeding syndrome was treated on the first day of hospitalization in the intensive care unit. After thiamine supplementation and when kalemia and phosphatemia have been normalized, renutrition was started. Parenteral nutrition as a complement to oral nutrition was used. Parenteral nutrition was well tolerated; recommended caloric and protein intakes were achieved by the fourth day of hospitalization. The clinical evolution was favorable. In conclusion, patients with Covid-19 infection should be considered malnourished when admitted to the intensive care unit. Macro and micronutrient intakes adapted to metabolically stressed patients are essential. Biological monitoring including monitoring of ionogram, phosphate, uremia, creatinine, liver function tests and blood glucose is essential in the nutritional management of patients with serious Covid-19 infection.

Dietary recommendations of the French Society for Rheumatology for patients with chronic inflammatory rheumatic diseases.

This article presents the 1st set of dietary recommendations of the French Society for Rheumatology for patients suffering from chronic inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD) made by a working group consisting of 12 rheumatology experts, 3 physician nutrition specialists, 1 internal medicine specialist, 1 registered dietician and 3 representatives from patient associations. This group relied on a systematic literature review and on expert opinions, while taking into consideration not only the joint effects of diet in IRD but also the extra-articular ones. Eight general principles and nine recommendations were established. The general principles emphasize that nutritional advice is not a substitute for pharmacological treatment of IRD and that it is an integral part of the patients' overall care, which could help the patient actively participate in their care. The recommendations propose supporting weight loss in subjects who are overweight or obese, a Mediterranean-type diet and supplementation in polyunsaturated fatty acids, mainly omega-3. Conversely, gluten-free diets (in the absence of celiac disease), vegetarian/vegan diets, fasting and elimination of dairy products should not be proposed. Supplementation with vitamins or trace elements is not indicated for controlling chronic IRD activity, while the use of probiotics or spices is not recommended given the limited or disparate data.

Lower extremity arterial disease in patients with diabetes: a contemporary narrative review.

Lower-extremity arterial disease (LEAD) is a major endemic disease with an alarming increased prevalence worldwide. It is a common and severe condition with excess risk of major cardiovascular events and death. It also leads to a high rate of lower-limb adverse events and non-traumatic amputation. The American Diabetes Association recommends a widespread medical history and clinical examination to screen for LEAD. The ankle brachial index (ABI) is the first non-invasive tool recommended to diagnose LEAD although its variable performance in patients with diabetes. The performance of ABI is particularly affected by the presence of peripheral neuropathy, medial arterial calcification, and incompressible arteries. There is no strong evidence today to support an alternative test for LEAD diagnosis in these conditions. The management of LEAD requires a strict control of cardiovascular risk factors including diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidaemia. The benefit of intensive versus standard glucose control on the risk of LEAD has not been clearly established. Antihypertensive, lipid-lowering, and antiplatelet agents are obviously worthfull to reduce major cardiovascular adverse events, but few randomised controlled trials (RCTs) have evaluated the benefits of these treatments in terms of LEAD and its related adverse events. Smoking cessation, physical activity, supervised walking rehabilitation and healthy diet are also crucial in LEAD management. Several advances have been achieved in endovascular and surgical revascularization procedures, with obvious improvement in LEAD management. The revascularization strategy should take into account several factors including anatomical localizations of lesions, medical history of each patients and operator experience. Further studies, especially RCTs, are needed to evaluate the interest of different therapeutic strategies on the occurrence and progression of LEAD and its related adverse events in patients with diabetes.

Restricted protein diet is associated with decrease in proteinuria: consequences on the progression of renal failure.

OBJECTIVE: Reduction of proteinuria is associated with a slower progression of renal failure. We questioned whether the change in proteinuria in response to a supplemented very low protein diet (SVLPD), which is known to reduce proteinuria, could function as a marker of the potential renoprotective effect of an SVLPD. DESIGN AND PATIENTS: In the 220 consecutive patients of our previously published cohort, the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was assessed every 3 months using the (51)Cr-EDTA method. Seventy-eight patients (mean age 52 +/- 17 years, body mass index 23 +/- 3 kg/m(2), GFR 15 +/- 6 mL/min) exhibited a proteinuria more than 1 g per day at the start of the regimen. Mean protein intake assessed by urinary nitrogen appearance was 0.42 +/- 0.24 g/kg per day at 4 months. The median follow-up was 24 months. RESULTS: Proteinuria decreased significantly after patients were treated with an SVLPD. The maximum mean percent reduction was attained at 3 months (47% +/- 27%), was not influenced by the levels of baseline proteinuria, and was similar in patients receiving or not receiving angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibition at the start of the study. The percent reduction and the residual proteinuria at 3 months predicted the rate of the later GFR decline. GFR decline was significantly lower in patients whose reduction in proteinuria at 3 months was higher than 50% (0.42 +/- 0.37 mL/min/mo vs. 0.10 +/- 0.15 mL/min/mo and 1.0 +/- 0.6 mL/min/mo vs. 0.15 +/- 0.19 mL/min/mo, P < .001 in patients with proteinuria higher or lesser than 3 g/d at start, respectively). CONCLUSION: These results do not differ from those reported with therapies antagonizing angiotensin II formation and/or activity aiming at reducing proteinuria in chronic renal diseases.

Oxidative and antioxidative status in pregnant women with either gestational or type 1 diabetes.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate oxidative and antioxidative status in pregnant diabetic women between 26 and 32 weeks of gestation. DESIGN AND METHODS: Free and total malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPX), and vitamins A and E were determined in plasma and erythrocytes of 54 pregnant women. Among these, 27 were diabetics with either gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), sub-group I, or previous insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (type 1 diabetes), sub-group II. The other 27 patients were controls. Fasting plasma glucose and HbA(1c) levels were determined in all women. RESULTS: HbA(1c) levels, plasma-, and erythrocyte-free MDA levels were significantly higher in all diabetic women and in both sub-groups than in controls. Plasma vitamin E and erythrocyte vitamin A levels were significantly lower in all diabetic women than in controls. Moreover, GPX and SOD activities were significantly reduced in all diabetic women, GPX in both sub-groups and SOD only in type 1 diabetes. CONCLUSIONS: The increased oxidative stress we demonstrated in pregnant women with previous type 1 diabetes or with GDM should be monitored by strictly controlling blood glucose during pregnancy with stringent recommendations and perhaps antioxidant supplementation.

Parkinson's disease patients with bilateral subthalamic deep brain stimulation gain weight.

Weight, body mass index (BMI) and energy expenditure/energy intake (EE/EI) was studied in 19 Parkinson's disease (PD) patients after subthalamic deep brain stimulation (STN-DBS) versus 14 nonoperated ones. Operated patients had a significant weight gain (WG, + 9.7 +/- 7 kg) and BMI increase (+ 4.7 kg/m2). The fat mass was higher after STN-DBS. Resting EE (REE; offdrug/ON stimulation) was significantly decreased in STN-DBS patients, while their daily energy expenditure (DEI) was not significantly different. A significant correlation was found among WG, BMI increase, and pre-operative levodopa-equivalent daily dose, their reduction after STN-DBS, and the differential REE related to stimulation and the REE in the offdrug/OFF stimulation condition. In conclusion, STN-DBS in PD induces a significant WG associated with a reduction in REE without DEI adjustment.

Body composition of patients on a very low-protein diet: a two-year survey with DEXA.

BACKGROUND: It has been reported that patients on a very-low-protein diet (VLPD) maintain a satisfactory nutritional status because of a conserved adaptive metabolic response. However, only few studies have examined the course of nutritional status and body composition in the long term (2 years). METHODS: Thirteen stable patients (8 men; age, 55 +/- 12 years; glomerular filtration rate (GFR), 15 +/- 5 mL/min) receiving a VLPD (0.3 g/kg/day protein) supplemented with amino acids and ketoanalogues (SVLPD) were studied for 2 years. A joint visit with a physician and a dietitian and routine blood and urine analyses were performed every month. Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA), which was used to assess modification of body composition, and GFR (urinary 51Cr-EDTA) and urinary urea and creatinine excretion, which were used to assess nutritional status and compliance to the diet, were assessed every 3 months. RESULTS: GFR, albumin, and prealbumin levels remained stable. Urea urinary excretion decreased at 3 months and then slightly increased at 2 years, but the calculated protein intake remained low at 0.38 +/- 0.1 g/kg/day. Energy intake remained close to 30 kcal/kg/day. No significant change was observed for total fat mass or percent fat mass. After an initial decrease, lean body mass stabilized at 6 months and then increased significantly from 6 to 24 months (P =.02, paired t-test); the mean increase during this period was of 2 kg, that is, 4.6%. Urinary creatinine excretion showed the same profile. Total bone mass, lumbar or hip site bone mass, and Z-score significantly decreased from T0 to 1 and 2 years (P <.05). CONCLUSION: This study confirms that a supplemented VLPD is nutritionally safe for a long period, but attention must be paid to bone mass.