The effects of L-carnitine supplementation on inflammation, oxidative stress, and clinical outcomes in critically Ill patients with sepsis: a randomized, double-blind, controlled trial

What Was Tested

Researchers studied L-Carnitine in this randomized controlled trial publication.

Thus, the researchers aimed to determine the effects of LC on inflammation, oxidative stress, and clinical parameters in critically ill septic patients.

Why It Was Studied

Sepsis, a life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a host's dysregulated response to infection with an inflammatory process, becomes a real challenge for the healthcare systems.

L-carnitine (LC) has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties as in previous studies.

Who Took Part

According to the abstract, 60 patients were involved.

Inflammatory and oxidative stress parameters (C-reactive protein (CRP), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde (MDA), total antioxidant capacity (TAC), 28-day mortality rate, and some monitoring variables were evaluated.

How the Study Was Run

In design terms this was a randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study.

Random assignment meant chance, not the researchers, decided who got L-Carnitine and who got the comparison, which limits bias.

As a double-blind L-Carnitine study, the assignments were hidden from both participants and investigators until the end.

Some patients received a placebo instead of L-Carnitine, giving a reference point.

A randomized double-blinded controlled trial was conducted.

What Was Measured

The subject headings attached to it are Antioxidants, Critical Illness, Inflammation, Oxidative Stress, C-Reactive Protein, Sepsis and Carnitine.

Author keywords: Clinical trial, L-carnitine and Mortality.

What This Means in Plain Language

The paper is a randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study of L-Carnitine in 60 patients.

Results are reported in around 5 sentences of the abstract; we leave them to the paper itself rather than summarise them.

The publication is from 2024 (Nutrition journal), a journal based in England.

More context: the L-Carnitine compound page, all human trials.