A Product Review of Alternative Oil-Based Intravenous Fat Emulsions

Abstract

Soybean oil-based intravenous fat emulsions have long been used as the primary product for delivery of lipid-based calories in parenteral nutrition formulations in the United States. Proinflammatory properties of these products may be related with poor clinical outcomes and have led investigators to develop newer generations of intravenous fat emulsions. These alternative formulations are derivatives of medium-chain triglycerides, olive oil, and fish oil in hopes to reduce the inflammatory response and potentially produce a clinically beneficial anti-inflammatory response. Although surrogate markers support this reduction in inflammatory response, clinical data and outcomes are still limited but potentially promising in the literature. This product review provides a general overview of the alternative-generation intravenous fat emulsion products and the literature supporting the potential transition to such products.

Keywords: intravenous fat emulsions; nutritional support; parenteral nutrition; parenteral nutrition solutions.