The Hip Functional Retrieval after Elective Surgery May Be Enhanced by Supplemented Essential Amino Acids

It is not known whether postsurgery systemic inflammation and plasma amino acid abnormalities are still present during rehabilitation of individuals after elective hip arthroplasty (EHA). Sixty subjects (36 females; age 66.58 +/- 8.37 years) were randomized to receive 14-day oral EAAs (8 g/day) or a placebo (maltodextrin). At admission to and discharge from the rehabilitation center, serum C-reactive protein (CRP) and venous plasma amino acid concentrations were determined. Post-EHA hip function was evaluated by Harris hip score (HHS) test. Ten matched healthy subjects served as controls. At baseline, all patients had high CRP levels, considerable reduction in several amino acids, and severely reduced hip function (HHS 40.78 +/- 2.70 scores). After treatment, inflammation decreased both in the EAA group and in the placebo group. Only EAA patients significantly improved their levels of glycine, alanine, tyrosine, and total amino acids. In addition, they enhanced the rate of hip function recovery (HHS) (from baseline 41.8 +/- 1.15 to 76.37 +/- 6.6 versus baseline 39.78 +/- 4.89 to 70.0 +/- 7.1 in placebo one; p = 0.006). The study documents the persistence of inflammation and plasma amino acid abnormalities in post-EHA rehabilitation phase. EAAs enhance hip function retrieval and improve plasma amino acid abnormalities.