The effect of oral supplementation with a combination of beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate, arginine and glutamine on wound healing: A retrospective analysis of diabetic haemodialysis patients

Abstract

Background: Diabetes is an important reason for end-stage renal failure and diabetic foot wounds worsen the life qualities of these patients. Protein and amino acid support accelerates the wound healing. The purpose of this retrospective study is to examine the effect of beta-hydroxy-beta- methylbutyrate, arginine and glutamine (Abound®) supplementation on the wound healing. Methods. A total of 11 diabetic dialysis patients were included in this retrospective study aiming to evaluate the effect of the diet support with beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate, arginine and glutamine on wound healing in diabetic dialysis patients. Pre-treatment and post-treatment wound depth and wound appearance were scored in accordance with the "Bates-Jensen" wound assessment tool. The results of 4-week treatment with beta-hydroxy-beta- methylbutyrate, arginine and glutamine (Abound®) support were evaluated in terms of wound healing. Results: The mean age of patients was 66 (SD: 10, range: 51-81) and 9 (81.8%) of them were males. After the 4-week treatment, in accordance with the Bates-Jensen scoring, healing was observed on the wound depth score of 7(63.6%) patients and on wound appearance score of 8(72.7%) patients out of 11. While the wound depth score of 4(36.4%) cases and wound appearance score of 3(27.3%) cases remained the same, no deterioration was observed on any cases throughout the follow-up period. Conclusion: In conclusion, our findings revealed that Abound treatment makes a positive contribution to the wound healing in diabetic dialysis patients. © 2013 Sipahi et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.