Clinical review: ketones and brain injury

This clinical review explores how the brain uses ketone bodies in health and in neurological conditions, and the potential of ketone supplementation in traumatic brain injury. It states that ketones can supply up to 50 percent of basal energy requirements during starvation and as much as 70 percent of the brain's energy needs, and that cerebral uptake of ketones increases significantly in acute brain injury. The authors suggest that a solution containing both hypertonic saline and ketones may prove ideal for managing refractory intracranial hypertension and low cerebral energy levels.