Evaluation of the biochemical effects of administration of intravenous nutrients using erythrocyte ATP/ADP ratios.

Regardless of clinical diagnosis, many acutely and chronically sick patients benefit from intravenous vitamins and minerals, which are usually administered in multiple infusions before observing obvious benefit. We hypothesized this effect was due to improved cellular energy, and attempted to find laboratory evidence via this study. Two groups of patients, chosen at random, received a single infusion of vitamins and minerals in two different dose schedules. Controls received no treatment. Study subjects were patients who presented specifically for a nutritional therapeutic approach, and although all were treated with multiple infusions, a single infusion was selected at random for this study. Thirty patients received a single infusion of a lower dose nutritional formula, sometimes known as a Myer's Cocktail (MC), and 34 had a single infusion of a higher dose nutritional I/V (NIV). Immediately prior to and after the infusion, blood was drawn and an erythrocyte ATP/ADP ratio (EADR) was determined. The results showed that in both infusion groups if the EADR was initially low, it would increase. If it were initially high, it would decrease. This effect was not observed in control subjects. Pre-test EADR boxplot analyses, derived from the results of each protocol, showed these results were statistically predictable. An analysis of variation (ANOVA) calculation indicated the differences were significant. The family error rate used was 0.05. We conclude that this regression of the EADR to the mean, as a result of either of the two infusions and not seen in control subjects, is biochemically significant.