A Placebo Controlled Trial Of L-Tryptophan In Post-Operative Delirium
Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
2012-12-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Post-operative delirium is a common and deleterious complication in elderly patients. The
investigators have previously found lower levels of serum tryptophan in post-operative
elderly patients who developed delirium in comparison to post-operative elderly patients who
did not develop delirium. The investigators hypothesize that post-operative supplementation
of L-tryptophan will reduce the duration and incidence of post-operative delirium. This study
is a double-blinded placebo controlled trial of L-tryptophan supplementation in
post-operative ICU patients 60 years and older. The primary outcome measure is the comparison
of duration of post-operative delirium in subjects who receive L-tryptophan supplementation
versus a similar appearing control.