SIRS: Omega 3 fish oil helps healing and decreases risk of death

In individuals with systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), a condition characterized by widespread inflammation throughout the body, taking omega-3 supplements appears to reduce the risk of death by 23% and hospital stay by about 10 days.

This was stated by scientists at Nanjing University (China). The research was published in recent months in the journal Lipids in Healt and Disease.

What is SIRS?

SIRS is a diffuse inflammatory state, caused by infectious or noninfectious injury, and characterized by systemic inflammation, organ dysfunction, and organ failure including acute lung injury and acute renal failure. Although antibiotics and various supportive therapies are continuously evolving, SIRS remains a leading cause of death in critically ill individuals. Based on data obtained from patients in the hospital, it is estimated that mortality from this condition is about 6 percent, and 28 percent of patients with SIRS develop septicemia, a life-threatening inflammatory complication. 

Trying to effectively control systemic inflammation in the body is an important goal in the treatment of SIRS. Due to their well-known anti-inflammatory properties, omega-3s are commonly used for this purpose, and even the European Society of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (Espen) recommends fish oil consumption for patients with SIRS. There are several meta-analysis studies, that is, using statistical techniques to combine the results of several existing studies, that have evaluated the effect of EPA (eicosahexaenoic acid) and DHA (docosapentaenoic acid) fatty acids in critically ill patients, but of these none focused on those affected with SIRS. The aim of the Chinese study was precisely to evaluate the effect of omega-3s on this narrow subset.

Omega-3s reduce mortality and hospitalization

Nine studies with a total of 783 adult patients were included in the work. Analysis of all the data showed that, compared with control groups, omega-3 supplementation could significantly reduce the incidence of mortality in patients suffering from SIRS and make hospital stays shorter by an average of 10 days. The large number of patients included in the meta-analysis allowed the researchers to make more accurate estimates of the effects of omega-3 supplementation.

An important meta-analysis study

According to the researchers, the data obtained indicate that omega-3 supplements may have an effect on the survival rate of patients with SIRS and confirm the influence of EPA- and DHA-rich fish oil consumption in therapeutic treatment. In addition, this study clearly shows the importance of meta-analysis for scientific research, being able to aggregate a number of subjects that would be impossible to have with other types of surveys.

Source: Wan X, Gao X, Bi J, Tian F, Wang X. Use of n-3 PUFAs can decrease the mortality in patients with systemic inflammatory response syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Lipids Health Dis. 2015;14(1):23.