Department of Child Neurology and Psychiatry, IRCCS Mondino Foundation, 27100 Pavia, Italy.
Department of Brain and Behaviour Neuroscience, University of Pavia, 27100 Pavia, Italy.
Nutrients. 2020 Sep 24;12(10):2920. doi: 10.3390/nu12102920.
To describe families' experiences in managing epileptic patients undergoing ketogenic dietary therapies (KDTs) in acute medical settings. We conducted a short online survey addressed to the families of patients undergoing a classic ketogenic diet (cKD) for at least three months. The survey was composed of 18 questions exploring the following issues: demographic characteristics, epilepsy diagnosis, ketogenic-diet treatment history, the reason for emergency-ward admission and patient management, surgery-procedure management, and outcomes. A sample of 50 families agreed to participate. Out of 50 patients, 33 (66%) had been undergoing a cKD for more than two years. Fifteen (30%) patients had been admitted at least once to the Emergency Room (ER), and 8.2% had undergone surgical procedures during cKD treatment. The causes of ER admission were the following: seizures, infection, trauma, and gastrointestinal or respiratory problems. In 75% of cases, blood ketonemia was not monitored during ER admission, and according to 46% of responders, the medical staff intervening did not have a basic knowledge of KDTs. According to both our experience and caregivers' reports, it might be useful to search for standardized specific approaches to patients undergoing KDTs in the emergency setting.
描述在急性医疗环境中管理接受生酮饮食疗法（KDT）的癫痫患者的家庭经验。我们针对至少接受经典生酮饮食（cKD）治疗三个月的患者的家属进行了一项简短的在线调查。该调查由 18 个问题组成，探讨了以下问题：人口统计学特征、癫痫诊断、生酮饮食治疗史、急诊病房入院和患者管理的原因、手术程序管理和结果。有 50 个家庭同意参与。在 50 名患者中，有 33 名（66%）接受 cKD 治疗已超过两年。15 名（30%）患者至少一次入住急诊室（ER），8.2%的患者在 cKD 治疗期间接受了手术。入住 ER 的原因如下：癫痫发作、感染、外伤以及胃肠道或呼吸道问题。在 75%的情况下，在 ER 入住期间没有监测血液酮血症，根据 46%的回答者，介入的医务人员对 KDT 没有基本的了解。根据我们的经验和护理人员的报告，在急诊环境中为接受 KDT 的患者寻找标准化的特定方法可能是有用的。
