Fatemeh Ramezani Kapourchali - Department of Inflammation and Immunity, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, US And Guilan Road Trauma Research Center, Guilan University of Medical Sciences, Rasht, Iran
Ali Malekshahi Moghadam - Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
Anoush Dehnadi Moghadam - Department of Anesthesiology, School of Medicine, Guilan University of Medical Sciences, Rasht, Iran
Shahrokh Yousefzadeh-Chabok - Guilan Road Trauma Research Center, Guilan University of Medical Sciences, Rasht, Iran And Department of Neurosurgery, School of Medicine, Guilan University of Medical Sciences, Rasht, Iran
Fatemeh Toorang - Cancer Research Center, Cancer Institute of Iran, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Mohammad Hassan Javanbakht - Department of Cellular and Molecular Nutrition, School of Nutritional Sciences and Dietetics, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Sara Ramezani - Neuroscience Research Center, School of Medicine, Guilan University of Medical Sciences, Rasht, Iran.

Introduction:Early and sufficient nutritional support is vital to improve outcomes in patients with traumatic brain injury. This study aims to determine the effects of dietitian involvementin the nutritional and clinical outcomes inpatients with traumatic brain injuries admitted tothe neurosurgical ICU. Materials &Methods: Forty-eight male patients with traumatic brain injuries admitted to Poursina Hospital neurosurgical ICU were studied, retrospectively. Patients were divided to either receive dietitian intervention or without any nutritional recommendation(control). Demographic information, Glasgow Coma Scale and Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II (APACHE II) scores, the timing of initial enteral feeding, the amount of energy and protein intakeon day 4, the duration of mechanical ventilation and ICU length of stay were recorded. Results:Patients under the dietitian recommendation had significantly lower timing of initial enteral nutrition compared to the other cases (P=0.02). The average energy or protein intake and the percentage of target energy or protein intake on day4 appeared to be significantly lower in the subjects in the control group than in those with nutritional intervention(P≤0.001). There was no statistically significant difference in the duration of mechanical ventilation and ICU length of staybetween different groups of patients. Conclusions:Instead of occasional consultations for exclusive cases, the daily attendance of dietitians during multidisciplinary rounds of ICU is required to assess the nutritional needs of patients.

Dietitians, Enteral tube feeding, Intensive care unit, Nutritional and Clinical assessments, Traumatic brain injury