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Fish oil may help accelerate sepsis recovery

Category: Infectious Diseases

According to recent laboratory testing, intensive care patients suffering from sepsis may benefit from adding fish oil to intravenous solutions meant to cure the disease.

Sepsis is a potentially fatal medical condition caused by a devastating immune response to a blood infection, the National Institute of General Medical Sciences reports. Traditional therapy involves IV solutions containing soybean oil and omega-6 acids that may actually promote inflammation, according to researchers.

The study followed 13 patients suffering from sepsis who received fish oil in an IV solution and 10 patients who only received the traditional nutrient solution therapy.

Researchers discovered that participants receiving fish oil had lower levels of inflammatory chemicals in their blood, attained better lung function and had a shorter stay in intensive care, according to Health Day.

"The positive results are important since they indicate that the use of such an emulsion in this group of patients will improve clinical outcomes, in comparison with the standard mix," said researcher Philip Calder of the University of Southampton in England, quoted by the news source.