Study design and participants
We conducted a double-blinded, parallel-group randomized
placebo-controlled trial on critically ill patients between June 2018
and August 2019. Critically ill patients were recruited from general
ICUs of Emam Reza hospital, Mashhad, northeast of Iran. We obtained
patient or surrogate consent in case the patient was unconscious. The
inclusion criteria were as follows: age >18 years, and
being diagnosed with critical illnesses. The exclusion criteria were as
follows: patients with renal or liver disease, patients undergoing
dialysis, cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy, pregnant or lactating
patients. Patients using antioxidant or anti-inflammatory supplements or
multivitamin supplement were also excluded. The study protocol was
approved by the Research Ethics Committee of Mashhad University of
Medical Sciences (registration code: IR.MUMS.fm.REC.1396.671) and was
registered in the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (registration
code: IRCT 20151108024938N2).