• Roupen Hatzakorzian, George Carvalho, Helen Bui, Tamaki Sato, Linda Wykes, Dominique Shum-Tim, and Thomas Schricker.
• Department of Anaesthesia, McGill University Health Center, Royal Victoria Hospital, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3A 1A1. roupenhatz@hotmail.com
• Metab. Clin. Exp. 2011 Oct 1; 60 (10): 1392-7.

AbstractAlthough the effects of insulin on glucose homeostasis are well recognized in surgical patients, its effect on perioperative protein metabolism has received little attention. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of high-dose insulin therapy on the plasma concentrations of amino acids (AAs) in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting surgery. We studied 20 nondiabetic patients scheduled for elective coronary artery bypass grafting surgery. Patients were randomly allocated to receive either standard metabolic care (target glycemia 6.0-10.0 mmol/L, control group, n = 10) or high-dose insulin therapy (insulin group, n = 10). Insulin was administered at 5 mU·kg(-1)·min(-1) beginning at skin incision. Simultaneously, 20% dextrose was infused at a variable rate adjusted to maintain glycemia between 4.0 and 6.0 mmol/L. Plasma AAs, glucose, cortisol, and insulin were measured immediately before surgery and at sternal closure. Differences in mean values were assessed by Student t test. Plasma concentrations of all AAs decreased in the insulin group, with 15 of 22 AAs, including all branched-chain AAs, being significantly lower at sternal closure when compared with the control group. At the end of surgery, plasma glucose concentration was significantly lower in the insulin group (4.2 ± 0.6 vs 7.3 ± 1.0 mmol/L, P = .0001), whereas plasma cortisol levels did not show any difference between groups. High-dose insulin therapy resulted in a significant reduction in plasma AAs, particularly branched-chain AAs, during cardiac surgery.Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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