Patient-Reported Experiences with a Low-Carbohydrate Ketogenic Diet: An International Survey in Patients with McArdle Disease

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  • Nicoline Løkken
  • Nicol C. Voermans
  • Linda K. Andersen
  • Walaa Karazi
  • Stacey L. Reason
  • Heidi Zweers
  • Gustav Wilms
  • Alfredo Santalla
  • Edward Susanibar
  • Alejandro Lucia
  • Vissing, John

The low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet (LCKD) has attracted increased attention in recent years as a potential treatment option for individuals with McArdle disease (glycogen storage disease type V), and despite the absence of strong scientific evidence of the LCKD’s benefits, increased numbers of individuals with McArdle disease have tried a LCKD. The objective of this study was to collect patient-reported experiences with a LCKD. We aimed to estimate the immediate prevalence of individuals that had tried a LCKD in an international McArdle disease cohort, and we aimed to report on the patient-reported experiences with the diet, both positive and negative. A total of 183 responses were collected from individuals with McArdle disease from 18 countries. We found that one-third of the cohort had tried a LCKD, and almost 90% experienced some degree of positive effect, with the most prominent effects on McArdle disease-related core symptoms (e.g., activity intolerance, muscle pain, and muscle fatigue). Adverse effects were rare and generally rated as mild to moderate. These patient-reported findings underline the need for randomized clinical trials to decisively determine if a LCKD is a suitable nutritional strategy for patients with McArdle disease. The results from this study can prompt and contribute to the design of such a clinical trial.

Original languageEnglish
Article number843
JournalNutrients
Volume15
Issue number4
Number of pages14
ISSN2072-6643
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2023

Bibliographical note

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© 2023 by the authors.

    Research areas

  • glycogen storage disease type V, ketogenic diet, low carbohydrate ketogenic diet, McArdle disease, patient-reported experiences, survey

ID: 367838053