The efficacy and function of albumin injection

Albumin in our body is the main source of our nutrients. This albumin is very important to us. It is usually in our blood. If the amount of albumin is too little, our blood in the blood vessels is likely to become less and less, and it is also easy to cause some diseases, especially those related to blood. So what are the effects and functions of albumin injections?

Supplementing albumin is supplementing nutrition. Many people have such a misunderstanding. To know whether albumin can be equated with nutritional injections, we must first understand the function of albumin. Albumin is synthesized in the liver and distributed in plasma, as well as in the extracellular fluid of the skin, muscles, and various other tissues. Albumin is the most abundant protein in plasma proteins (others mainly include globulin, fibrin, etc.). Its main function is to maintain the colloidal osmotic pressure of the blood, that is, albumin can hold water in the blood vessels and help the blood maintain a certain volume in the blood vessels. If the amount of albumin in the body is too low, the water in the blood may not be retained and lost. In addition to maintaining the colloidal osmotic pressure of the blood, another major function of albumin is to transport substances, including endogenous substances such as fatty acids, bilirubin, various hormones, etc., and exogenous substances such as drugs. Therefore, the concentration of some drugs will be affected by the albumin content.

As the name suggests, albumin is a type of protein and occupies a certain content in the body. If the nutritional status is not good, the synthesis of protein will naturally decrease. Therefore, in clinical practice, the albumin content in plasma is often used as one of the indicators to assess the nutritional status of patients. However, direct injection of albumin cannot directly supplement nutrition, because the source of human nutrition, in addition to protein, mainly includes carbohydrates and fats. However, albumin will be lost significantly in some acute inflammations or infections, liver or kidney diseases, heavy bleeding, and burns.

The albumin content in the plasma of an average adult is 35-38 g/L, and is lower in pregnant women and the elderly. If the level is less than 15 g/L, it will be life-threatening. When the albumin level is between 20 and 25 g/L, symptoms of edema may occur, and too low albumin may prolong the patient's hospitalization. Clinically, albumin is suitable for patients with shock, burns, albumin deficiency symptoms before, during or after surgery, and albumin levels below 25 g/L. However, when supplementing, it is not just a matter of supplementing blindly. It should be noted that when there is too much albumin or the concentration is too high, it will cause excessive blood volume and cause cardiovascular overload, pulmonary edema, excessive water accumulation in the body, prolonged clotting time, and even acute renal failure. Moreover, albumin preparations are made from mixed human plasma. Although they have undergone strict screening and virus inactivation, they still cannot completely prevent infection by infectious agents and the development of infectious diseases. Therefore, special care should be taken when using it to avoid unnecessary abuse.