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Critical Illness and the Intestinal Microflora: pH as a Surrogate Marker

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Diet and Nutrition in Critical Care

Abstract

During critical illness, the intestinal tract is highly vulnerable to stress, which may be reflected by alterations in intraluminal pH. Subtle changes in luminal and mucosal pH may be sensed by the indigenous intestinal microbiota, resulting an alteration in their phenotype and their ability to protect the mucosa. In this paper, we examine the role of intestinal pH in critical illness, by highlighting current knowledge and advances in the study of this dynamic relationship between host and microbe. This chapter will mainly focus on intestinal microflora and the usefulness of pH as a marker for critical illness.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by NIH grants: RO1 GM062344-13, DK-38510, and DK-47722 and Digestive Disease Center grant: DK-42086.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Surgical Infection Research and Therapeutics, The University of Chicago Medicine, 5841 S. Maryland MC 6090, 60637, Chicago, IL, USA

    Irma Fleming, Jennifer Defazio, Olga Zaborina & John C. Alverdy

Authors
  1. Irma Fleming
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  2. Jennifer Defazio
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  3. Olga Zaborina
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  4. John C. Alverdy
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Irma Fleming .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nutrition, King's College London, London, United Kingdom

    Rajkumar Rajendram

  2. School of Medicine, King's College London, London, United Kingdom

    Victor R. Preedy

  3. Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Westminster, London, United Kingdom

    Vinood B. Patel

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Fleming, I., Defazio, J., Zaborina, O., Alverdy, J.C. (2014). Critical Illness and the Intestinal Microflora: pH as a Surrogate Marker. In: Rajendram, R., Preedy, V., Patel, V. (eds) Diet and Nutrition in Critical Care. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-8503-2_116-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-8503-2_116-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-8503-2

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