DALLAS, Oct 15 (Reuters Health) -- Oil from the seeds of the borage plant, commonly used in herbal remedies, significantly increased survival odds in patients being treated for acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in a critical care unit at the Mayo Clinic.
ARDS is a frequently fatal complication of trauma or major surgery, with a mortality rate of 60% to 70%. ARDS patients have severe inflammation of the lungs and extreme difficulty breathing.
A study from the Mayo Clinic, presented this week at the annual meeting of the American Society of Anesthesiologists, found a 35% reduction in mortality among 150 patients fed a diet of borage seed oil, fish oil, protein, carbohydrates and antioxidants.
The study patients were fed the experimental diet by nasogastric tube inserted through the nose and into the stomach.
There was evidence that the diet had an effect on inflammation, since comparisons of lung fluid samples from before and after the treatment showed significantly lowered white blood cell counts, a sign of reduced inflammation.
Lead investigator Dr. Michael J. Murray, assistant professor of anesthesiology at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, believes the beneficial effects of the diet were from gammalinolenic acid, an ingredient in the borage oil.
Murray said a separate study of 30 ARDS patients also showed significant improvement in those fed the same experimental diet, with a survival rate of 72%.
