Background: Following a nil per os (NPO) regimen, most patients with acute pancreatitis (AP) can resume normal oral intake within 1 week. If not tolerated, it is recommended to initiate artificial feeding, preferably by the enteral route.
Aim: To evaluate the nutritional management of patients with AP in a Dutch cohort (EARL study).
Methods: Observational study in 18 hospitals. Total days of NPO, tube feeding (TF) with/without oral feeding, total parenteral nutrition (TPN) and total starvation time were analysed.
Results: In mild AP, a majority of cases (80.7%, 117/145) were managed with an NPO regimen only. Twenty-seven patients (18.6%) with mild AP additionally received TF; one received TPN. Of those with severe AP, more than half of the patients (56.2%, nine of 16) were treated with TF besides an NPO regimen; four received TPN. TF was delivered preferably via the jejunal route. The median period of total starvation was 2 days for both mild and severe AP. Only 5.5% (nine of 164) of patients had a prolonged starvation time of more than 5 days.
Conclusions: The total time of starvation was limited in a majority of patients admitted for AP. According to international guidelines, additional nutritional interventions were quickly undertaken with enteral feeding via the jejunum as the preferred route.