Propensity-Score Matched Comparative Study on Effects of Intravenous Human Serum Albumin Administration in Critically Ill Adult Patients Receiving Parenteral Nutrition.

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to assess the effect of intravenous human serum albumin administration (IV HSA) on nutrition markers, including non-serum-albumin plasma protein levels, in adult critically ill patients receiving parenteral nutrition (PN).

METHODS: This was a retrospective study of prospectively collected data. Patients included in an initial cohort were patients who initiated IV HSA within 24 hours of start of PN. A second cohort who did not received IV HSA during PN was manually selected, matching several variables. Subsequently, both cohorts were propensity-score matched, resulting in 2 final cohorts: the cohort receiving IV HSA (ALB) and the cohort not receiving IV HSA (NOALB).

RESULTS: A total of 42 patients, 21 in each cohort, entered the study. Both cohorts were similar in demographics, anthropometrics, comorbidities, diagnoses, PN composition, and severity of the disease, biochemistry, and nutrition markers. Patients in the ALB cohort received IV HSA at a dose of 30.0 g/day during 5 days. The ALB cohort presented higher values of final serum albumin level and serum albumin level change from baseline, but also presented lower values of final non-serum-albumin plasma protein levels and their change and lower final prealbumin. In addition, bilirubin in the ALB cohort increased, whereas it decreased in the NOALB cohort.

CONCLUSION: Patients receiving IV HSA and PN for several days increased serum albumin level, but decreased non-serum-albumin plasma protein levels. In addition, bilirubin clearance could be slightly impaired in these patients.