PO-0586 Hyperalimentation And Plasma Levels Of Amino Acids In Very Preterm Infants Dependent On Parenteral Nutrition

Background The standardised, concentrated with added macronutrients parenteral (SCAMP) nutrition regimen provides hyperalimentation to very preterm infants (VPI). Current neonatal parenteral nutrition (PN) amino acid (AA) formulations predate recent recommended protein intakes. AA were categorised as essential, conditionally essential (in VPI) and non-essential. We hypothesised hyperalimentation would prevent low plasma levels of conditionally essential AA (CEAA). Methods Infants ( Results Infants were randomised to SCAMP (n = 74) and control (n = 76) groups. The mean difference (95% confidence interval) in total protein intake (g/kg) was 8.7 (6.0–11.5) d1–28. All essential AAs (phenylalanine, lysine, valine, leucine, isoleucine, methionine, threonine, histidine and tryptophan) were within or above the reference range (RR) in both groups. Plasma arginine/cysteine levels (week 2) were below RR in both SCAMP (n = 45) and control (n = 62) infants (Table 1). Plasma cysteine levels (week 3) were below RR in both SCAMP (n = 39) and control (n = 36) infants. Conclusion Despite hyperalimentation and increased protein intake, PN-dependent VPI remain biochemically deficient in some conditionally essential AAs.