27 Oral Supplementation for Burn Patients: Would YOU Eat That?

Introduction The metabolic demands of burn injury often require that patients consume a high-calorie diet. For patients taking nutrition solely by the oral route, this can be challenging, and supplementation is necessary. The burn team is sometimes frustrated at patients’ inability or perceived unwillingness to consume the daily prescribed supplementation. The purpose of this study was to expose the burn team to the various nutritional supplements offered to patients, and to gain a better understanding of the palatability those supplements. Methods Nine volunteers from the burn team participated in this blinded study: an attending surgeon; surgical residents (2); students (1); therapists (2); and nurses (3). Samples of 9 different nutritional supplements were placed in numbered cups, with the contents known only to the dietitians. The supplements consisted of: “milkshake” consistency drinks (#1,4,6,7, 9); gelatin (#2); frozen custard (#3); clear thin liquid (#5); and pudding (#8). Each participant received one cup of each supplement and was asked to rate the contents on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being tastiest. Mean, trimmed mean, and median taste scores were noted. Data were analyzed by t-test and by regression to assess for differences based on protein content. Results The highest mean and trimmed mean scores (7.3 and 7.4) were given to product #8. Product #1 had slightly lower scores (6.4 and 6.1). Product #9 received the lowest mean score (2.2); the trimmed mean was even lower (1.7). Median scores for the products upheld these results, and most of the remainder of the products received median scores of 4 or 5. T-test analysis showed significant differences in preference for products 1 and 8 versus the rest of the products (with means of 2.2 to 5.3). Regression analysis suggests that taste scores tend to be higher for products with a lower percentage of calories from protein, while the higher protein products fare less well in taste (a decline of roughly 0.47 in mean taste score for every 10-percentage point increase in percentage of calories from protein). Conclusions A blinded taste test of commonly offered supplements revealed that most products are, at best, moderately acceptable (median score 4–5). This suggests two potential changes in the approach to oral supplementation. First, the burn team should be sympathetic to the challenges that patients face with oral supplements, particularly the high-protein versions. Second, the burn team may need to be innovative. Chilling the drinks, offering different flavors, mixing flavors, or mixing with other liquids may help patients to take oral supplements more enthusiastically. Sampling these oral supplements has helped our team to understand better what we ask our patients to do to achieve their nutritional goals.