COMPARISON OF 2 LIQUID DIETS IN SURGICAL PATIENTS

An open, randomized, 10-day study compared the efficacy of two liquid diets in 74 postsurgical Indian patients. One group received a convent ional liquid diet (CLD) prepared by the hospital dietitian; the other group received the Recupex(R) Liquid Diet (RLD), which matched the rec ommended daily allowances described in international literature. Both diets provided the same amount of protein and calories. Patients' anth ropometric parameters, nitrogen balance, and biochemical parameters we re recorded at intervals during the study. RLD was superior to CLD on all measured parameters. At the end of the study, prealbumin levels ha d increased in both groups: 0.005 mg/dL in the CLD group and 0.010 mg/ dL in the RLD group (P<.05). All patients tolerated the liquid diets, although 2 patients in each group had nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. In this study, RLD was superior to CLD.