Continuous vs discontinuous enteral nutrition: compared effects on serum lipids and lipoproteins in humans.

The present study was designed to assess the cholesterol-lowering effect of enteral nutrition when administered either as discontinuous or as continuous infusion. Twelve neurologic patients were randomly assigned to receive exclusive continuous (n = 6) or discontinuous (n = 6) enteral feeding for 7 days. Serum lipids, apoproteins, and 24-hour urinary C-peptide concentrations were determined on days 0 and 7. The fall during continuous nutrition was significantly greater than that during discontinuous nutrition for serum cholesterol (14% vs 2.4%; p < .05), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (17.4% vs 3.9%; p = .02), and apoprotein B (19% vs 0.2%; p < .05) concentrations. Mean 24-hour urinary C-peptide excretion increase was significantly greater (p < .05) during discontinuous (78%) than during continuous enteral nutrition (15.6%). These results suggest that the cholesterol-lowering effect of enteral nutrition was induced mainly by the continuous delivery of the nutrients and was related to changes in insulin secretion.