Publications by authors named "Waele E"

Background: Adequate energy and protein provision is mandatory to optimize survival chances in critical illness, prevent loss of muscle mass, and reduce length of stay. Data are available concerning feeding adequacy in intensive care unit (ICU) participants, but little is known about the adequacy in post-ICU participants. This systematic review aimed to evaluate feeding adequacy in post-ICU participants and addressed causes of feeding interruption leading to suboptimal adequacy.

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Background: Convalescent plasma (CP) reduced the mortality in COVID-19 induced ARDS (C-ARDS) patients treated in the CONFIDENT trial. As patients are immunologically heterogeneous, we hypothesized that clusters may differ in their treatment responses to CP.

Methods: We measured 20 cytokines, chemokines and cell adhesion markers using a multiplex technique at the time of inclusion in the CONFIDENT trial in patients of centers having accepted to participate in this secondary study.

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  • * A study measured MeHg levels in various fish from North Sea catches, allowing researchers to calculate the daily mercury intake for the Belgian population in 1975, 1997, and 2014-2021, and compare these rates with international standards.
  • * Although average MeHg intake rates in Belgium have decreased and are below the acceptable daily intake (ADI) norms, higher consumption levels (95th percentile rates) still pose risks, especially as MeHg levels in hair and blood indicate potential health effects in different age groups.
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  • Understanding the significance of kidney disease (KD) in hospitalized patients, this guideline aims to provide evidence-based nutritional recommendations due to the metabolic and nutritional impacts of acute (AKD) and chronic kidney disease (CKD).
  • The guideline development involved a systematic review of literature from 1999 to 2020, leading to over 30 recommendations on assessing nutritional status, identifying at-risk patients, and integrating nutrition with kidney replacement therapy (KRT) through a consensus process.
  • The conclusion emphasizes the diverse nutritional needs of patients with KD, advocating for personalized nutrition strategies to prevent underfeeding and overfeeding, and offering practical advice for daily clinical practice.
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  • The PRECISe trial aimed to determine if providing critically ill patients on mechanical ventilation with higher protein intake (2.0 g/kg per day) would enhance their quality of life and functional recovery compared to standard protein intake (1.3 g/kg per day).
  • This double-blinded, multicentre trial included patients from 10 hospitals across the Netherlands and Belgium, focusing on those expected to need invasive ventilation for at least three days.
  • Key aspects of the study included random assignment to either the standard or high-protein group, with blinding of all involved personnel, and tracking the primary outcome through health utility scores at specified intervals (30, 90, and 180 days post-randomization).
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Evidence is growing that the individual adjustment of energy targets guided by indirect calorimetry (IC) can improve outcome. With the development of a new generation of devices that are easier to use and rapid, it appears important to share knowledge and expertise that may be used to individualize nutrition care. Despite the focus of this tutorial being on one contemporary device, the principles of IC apply across existing devices and can assist tailoring the nutrition prescription and in assessing response to nutrition therapy.

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The prevalence and incidence of NAFLD is rising due to the obesity pandemic, caused by the widespread availability of ultra-processed foods and the decrease of physical activity. Factors such as socioeconomic status (SES), ethnicity and geographical location are associated with NAFLD, with lower SES correlating with higher incidence, particularly in regions like America or Europe. Beside the quality of food, the quantity also plays a crucial role.

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Parenteral nutrition (PN) is typically administered to individuals with gastrointestinal dysfunction, a contraindication for enteral feeding, and a need for nutritional therapy. When PN is the only energy source in patients, it is defined as total parenteral nutrition (TPN). TPN is a life-saving approach for different patient populations, both in infants and adults.

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Intestinal failure-associated liver disease (IFALD) is a relatively common complication in individuals receiving parenteral nutrition (PN). IFALD can be manifested as different types of liver injury, including steatosis, cholestasis, and fibrosis, and could result in liver failure in some cases. The onset and progression of IFALD are highly dependent on various patient and PN-related risk factors.

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Article Synopsis
  • The PRECISe trial is a randomized controlled study that investigates whether higher enteral protein intake improves recovery in critically ill adults on mechanical ventilation, focusing on primary and secondary health outcomes using a Bayesian analysis approach.
  • The primary outcome evaluates quality of life through the EQ-5D-5L score, along with various secondary outcomes, including walking test performance, handgrip strength, and mortality rates, assessed throughout the study period.
  • The study aims to provide insights into the effects of high protein diets in critically ill patients by applying both weakly informative and more specific priors in its analysis, ensuring robust evaluation of the results.
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Background: Passive immunization with plasma collected from convalescent patients has been regularly used to treat coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). Minimal data are available regarding the use of convalescent plasma in patients with Covid-19-induced acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).

Methods: In this open-label trial, we randomly assigned adult patients with Covid-19-induced ARDS who had been receiving invasive mechanical ventilation for less than 5 days in a 1:1 ratio to receive either convalescent plasma with a neutralizing antibody titer of at least 1:320 or standard care alone.

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Background: Long COVID is suggested to be present in 14 to 43% of COVID 19-survivors. Literature on this new condition states a need for a multidisciplinary approach including physical exercise and nutrition. The aim of the current pilot study is to investigate the feasibility of the proposed protocol to prepare for a randomized controlled study that addresses the effectiveness of a personalized multimodal treatment compared to standard physiotherapy.

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Nutritional assessment and provision of nutritional therapy are a core part of intensive care unit (ICU) patient treatment. The ESPEN guideline on clinical nutrition in the ICU was published in 2019. However, uncertainty and difficulties remain regarding its full implementation in daily practice.

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COVID-19 can induce neurological sequelae, negatively affecting the quality of life. Unravelling this illness's impact on structural brain connectivity, white-matter microstructure (WMM), and cognitive performance may help elucidate its implications. This cross-sectional study aimed to investigate differences in these factors between former hospitalised COVID-19 patients (COV) and healthy controls.

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Green leaf volatiles (GLVs), volatile organic compounds released by plants upon tissue damage, are key signaling molecules in plant immunity. The ability of exogenous GLV application to trigger an induced resistance (IR) phenotype against arthropod pests has been widely reported, but its effectiveness against plant pathogens is less well understood. In this study, we combined mRNA sequencing-based transcriptomics and phytohormone measurements with multispectral imaging-based precision phenotyping to gain insights into the molecular basis of Z-3-hexenyl acetate-induced resistance (Z-3-HAC-IR) in rice.

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Purpose: Nutritional therapy is essential to ICU care. Successful early enteral feeding is hindered by lack of protocols, gastrointestinal intolerance and feeding interruptions, leading to impaired nutritional intake. smART+ was developed as a nutrition management feeding platform controlling tube positioning, reflux, gastric pressure, and malnutrition.

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Personalization of ICU nutrition is essential to future of critical care. Recommendations from American/European guidelines and practice suggestions incorporating recent literature are presented. Low-dose enteral nutrition (EN) or parenteral nutrition (PN) can be started within 48 h of admission.

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Background: Air pollution exposure is one of the major risk factors for aggravation of respiratory diseases. We investigated whether exposure to air pollution and accumulated black carbon (BC) particles in blood were associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) disease severity, including the risk for intensive care unit (ICU) admission and duration of hospitalisation.

Methods: From May 2020 until March 2021, 328 hospitalised COVID-19 patients (29% at intensive care) were recruited from two hospitals in Belgium.

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Background: Critically ill patients are subject to severe skeletal muscle wasting during intensive care unit (ICU) stay, resulting in impaired short- and long-term functional outcomes and health-related quality of life. Increased protein provision may improve functional outcomes in ICU patients by attenuating skeletal muscle breakdown. Supporting evidence is limited however and results in great variety in recommended protein targets.

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Purpose Of This Review: This review will focus on the neglected side of metabolic support in ICU survivors: nutritional therapy after critical illness. Knowledge of the evolution of the metabolism of patients that survived critical illness will be bundled, and current practices will be investigated. We will discuss some studies conducted to determine resting energy expenditure in ICU survivors and which identified barriers that cause interruptions in the feeding process based on published data between January 2022 and April 2023.

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Background: Parenteral nutrition (PN) is often associated with liver dysfunction in the ICU, although other factors such as sepsis, acute heart failure (AHF), and hepatotoxic drugs can be equally present. The relative impact of PN on liver dysfunction in critically ill patients is largely unknown.

Methods: We recorded the presence of pre-existing liver disturbances, AHF, sepsis, daily PN volume, and commonly used hepatotoxic drugs in adult ICU patients, together with daily aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT), alkalic phosphatase (AP), total bilirubin (TB), and INR values in patients with three or more PN treatment days.

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Indirect calorimetry (IC) is considered the gold standard for measuring resting energy expenditure (REE). This review presents an overview of the different techniques to assess REE with special regard to the use of IC in critically ill patients on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), as well as to the sensors used in commercially available indirect calorimeters. The theoretical and technical aspects of IC in spontaneously breathing subjects and critically ill patients on mechanical ventilation and/or ECMO are covered and a critical review and comparison of the different techniques and sensors is provided.

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