Safety of Using Enteral Nutrition Formulations Containing Dietary Fiber in Hospitalized Critical Care Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis

Enteral nutrition (EN) is the preferred route of nutrition support for patients with critical illness undergoing intensive care. Experts in the field caution against using fiber during EN because of perceived adverse patient outcomes; however, a comprehensive assessment of this topic is not evident to date. In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched four databases from inception to April 20, 2020, for studies on adverse events or health outcomes associated with using EN formulations containing fiber in hospitalized adults with critical illness. Nineteen articles were included. Random-effects meta-analysis models showed significantly lower diarrhea scores for fiber groups compared with nonfiber groups (pooled mean difference: -2.78; 95% CI, -4.10 to -1.47) but mixed results for risk of diarrhea between groups, depending on measures used for diarrhea (Hart and Dobb scale, pooled risk ratio [RR]: 0.68; 95% CI, 0.45-1.02; other diarrhea scales, pooled RR: 0.42; 95% CI, 0.20-0.89). Models showed 39% lower risk of gastrointestinal (GI) complications overall for fiber compared with nonfiber groups (pooled RR: 0.61; 95% CI, 0.47-0.79) but no group differences for individual GI complications, mortality, and intensive care unit or hospital length of stay. Analyses stratified by soluble- or mixed-fiber interventions reduced heterogeneity in models but showed identical conclusions. EN formulas with fiber may help reduce incidence and severity of diarrhea and GI complications overall in critically ill patients, without increased risk of other adverse events. Bias among specific GI measures indicates more high-quality studies are needed to verify these conclusions.