Could nutrition drinks help Crohn's surgery patients?

A study is under way to see if a liquid nutrition programme can improve the lives of Crohn's disease patients undergoing surgery.

University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust is undertaking a clinical trial to see if the diet, known as Exclusive Enteral Nutrition (EEN), could help when taken alongside bowel surgery.

Working with the University of Birmingham, it is hoped the study will determine whether it can cut complications and improve outcomes.

John Gault, 34, of Newhaven, has lived with Crohn's since he was 11 and had surgery at the Royal Sussex County Hospital earlier this year. Beforehand, he followed a programme similar to that being studied, calling it "life changing".

Crohn's disease is a chronic inflammatory condition of the digestive tract.

Gault said: "The symptoms that used to dominate so much of my life have reduced significantly, and my health now feels much closer to how it was before I developed Crohn's."

University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust's research chief, Prof Martin Llewelyn, said: "Research is fundamental to our vision of delivering excellent care everywhere.

"By embedding research into routine clinical practice, we can offer patients access to innovative treatments while continually improving the quality, safety and effectiveness of the care that we provide.

"John's experience shows what is possible when research and clinical care come together."

He added: "Our ambition is for every patient to have the opportunity to take part in research, helping us shape the future of healthcare."