Influence of intravenous vitamin E supplementation in cardiac surgery on oxidative stress: a double-blinded, randomized, controlled study

Background. I.V. infusions of vitamin E emulsion (all-rac-alpha-tocopherol) may reduce ischaemia-reperfusion injury after elective cardiac surgery. Methods. Forty patients participated in a prospective, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial, receiving either placebo or four doses (270 mg each) of all-rac-alpha-tocopherol between 16 h before and 48 h after surgery. We determined plasma concentrations of vitamin E, vitamin C, malondialdehyde, creatine kinase, troponin I and interleukin 6 and other measures of clinical outcome. Results. Infusion of vitamin E caused normalization of vitamin E plasma concentrations during and after surgery, but had no effect on the early increase in malondialdehyde concentration or the decreases in antioxidative capacity and the water-soluble antioxidant vitamin C. Conclusions. Normalization of plasma vitamin E concentrations with parenteral vitamin E emulsion does not affect biochemical markers of myocardial injury and does not affect clinical outcome after cardiac surgery.