Relationship between Triglyceride Tolerance, Body Mass Index, and Fat Depots in Hospitalized Patients Receiving Parenteral Nutrition

Background: Hypertriglyceridemia has been associated with adverse outcomes in patients receiving intravenous fat emulsions (IVFEs), but little is known about its prevalence and causes. Materials and Methods: The study investigated whether a relationship exists between body mass index (BMI) and triglyceride tolerance in parenterally fed patients. We conducted a retrospective analysis of 287 adults receiving parenteral nutrition to determine whether patients with very low BMI (VLBMI, 2) tolerate IVFEs better than do patients with low BMI (LBMI, 16-18.4 kg/m²), normal-weight patients (NBMI, 18.5-24.9 kg/m²), and overweight/obese patients (HBMI, ‰25 kg/m²). Results: The median triglyceride concentration during IVFE was significantly lower in VLBMI patients at 107 mg/dL compared with 124 mg/dL in non-VLBMI patients (P =.016), despite higher lipid infusion rates in the VLBMI group. There was a significant association between triglycerides and BMI in the aggregate cohort (R = 0.2375, P