Context: The impact of mechanical ventilation on energy expenditure after spinal cord injury (SCI) is sparse. The objective of this case-series is to measure 15-minutes resting metabolic rate (RMR) to determine 24-hours measured-RMR (m-RMR) using QUARK indirect calorimeter (IC) and; compare the m-RMR with estimated RMR (e-RMR) using four commonly used predictive equations (Harris-Benedict, Mifflin St-Jeor, Henry and Schofield).

Findings: We measured the RMR of four patients with SCI (one male and three female; mean age: 58.3 years) all with complete tetraplegia (ISNCSCI A) twice in a one-week interval using an IC with two sampling flow settings during a six month period. The median (IQ) of all m-RMRs was 1094 (340.2) kcal/day. The median m-RMR was 40.1% lower than the median calculated with four different e-RMRs using predictive equations. All four predictive equations overestimated RMR in SCI patients requiring mechanical ventilation by 4.1–61.1% (Harris-Benedict: 28.8–60.6%; Mifflin St-Jeor: 6.9–61.1%; Henry: 4.1–58.9% and; Schofield: 6–54.6%).

Conclusion/clinical relevance: There is a high variability of e-RMR and m-RMR in patients with SCI who are dependent on mechanical ventilation. The use of predictive equations may lead to over-estimation of energy requirements. To avoid overfeeding we recommended measuring RMR using IC wherever possible. A further study with a larger sample size is needed due to the small number of subjects in our case-series. Development of a validated RMR equation in the SCI population is warranted

背景：机械通气对脊髓损伤 (SCI) 后能量消耗的影响很少。本案例系列的目的是使用 QUARK 间接热量计 (IC) 测量 15 分钟静息代谢率 (RMR) 以确定 24 小时测量的 RMR (m-RMR) 和；使用四个常用的预测方程（Harris-Benedict、Mifflin St-Jeor、Henry 和 Schofield）将 m-RMR 与估计的 RMR (e-RMR) 进行比较。

结果：我们使用具有两个采样流量设置的 IC 在六月期间。所有 m-RMR 的中位数 (IQ) 为 1094 (340.2) kcal/天。m-RMR 的中位数比使用预测方程使用四种不同的 e-RMR 计算的中位数低 40.1%。所有四个预测方程都高估了需要机械通气的 SCI 患者的 RMR 4.1-61.1%（Harris-Benedict：28.8-60.6%；Mifflin St-Jeor：6.9-61.1%；Henry：4.1-58.9% 和；Schofield：6-54.6 %）。

结论/临床相关性：依赖机械通气的 SCI 患者中，e-RMR 和 m-RMR 的变异性很大。预测方程的使用可能导致对能量需求的高估。为避免过度喂食，我们建议尽可能使用 IC 测量 RMR。由于我们的案例系列中的受试者数量较少，因此需要进行更大样本量的进一步研究。有必要在 SCI 人群中开发经过验证的 RMR 方程