Comparative study of parenteral nutrition in renal failure using essential and nonessential amino acid containing solutions.

One of the controversies in the nutritional therapy of patients with renal failure is the respective role of either the essential amino acids alone or both essential and nonessential amino acids in the treatment of these patients. During a period when essential amino acids were unavailable, a large number of patients with acute renal failure was treated with a modified solution consisting of both essential and nonessential amino acids. The solution consisted of 3.8 grams of nitrogen in 46 per cent dextrose in units of 750 milliliters. A mean of 2,322 +/- 151 calories was administered to this group of patients. Over-all, the survival rate was 9 per cent as opposed to 75 per cent in the previous group treated with essential amino acids only and hypertonic dextrose, 40 per cent, in the group of historical controls treated with hypertonic dextrose. The groups are not strictly comparable because the group treated with both essential and nonessential amino acids may not have been strictly comparable, particularly with a slightly longer duration of renal failure, higher initial blood urea nitrogen level and lower urine volume than either of the other two groups previously treated. While adequate stabilization, but not a decrease in the blood urea nitrogen level, may be achieved from the use of both essential and nonessential amino acids, the excessive mortality seen may be related to differential effects of essential amino acids in supporting host resistance, while nonessential amino acids do not. The results of this study suggest that, until the safety and efficacy of a mixture of essential and nonessential amino acids in renal failure can be demonstrated, essential amino acids remain the treatment of choice as the nutritional support of patients with acute tubular necrosis.