Table 1.

Potential for lactate treatment for illness and injury (from Brooks, 2020a )

Resuscitation (fluid, electrolytes, energy) (Azevedo et al. 2007; Garcia‐Alvarez et al. 2014 a; Marik & Bellomo, 2016)

Acidosis (exogenous lactate infusion has an alkalotic effect) (Miller et al. 2005; Wu et al. 2011; Marik & Bellomo, 2016)

Regulation of glycaemia (lactate is the major gluconeogenesis (GNG) precursor) (Meyer et al. 1998, 2002; Gerich et al. 2001; Marik, 2009)

Traumatic brain injury (lactate is brain fuel and anti‐inflammatory) (Glenn et al. 2015 a)

Inflammation (via GPR81 binding down stream signalling lactate inhibit the inflammasome) (Hoque et al. 2014)

Acute pancreatitis and hepatitis (lactate is an energy substrate, a GNG precursor and anti‐inflammatory agent) (Hoque et al. 2014)

Myocardial infarction, cardiac surgery and acute heart failure (lactate is heart fuel) (Shapiro et al. 2005; Bergman et al. 2009 b)

Burns (lactate is an energy substrate, a GNG precursor and anti‐inflammatory agent) (Spitzer, 1979)

Sepsis (lactate incorporation in resuscitation fluids can support maintenance of blood pressure and circulation, and help deliver antibiotics, as well as being an energy substrate, a GNG precursor and have an anti‐inflammatory effect) (Garcia et al. 1995; Marik & Bellomo, 2016)

Dengue (lactate is an energy substrate, a GNG precursor and anti‐inflammatory agent) (Wu et al. 2011; Somasetia et al. 2014)

Cognition (lactate readily crosses the blood‐brain barrier, fuels neurons and stimulates secretion of brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), improves executive function and memory) (Rice et al. 2002; Holloway et al. 2007; Hashimoto et al. 2018)

Wound healing (Hunt et al. 2007) and muscle regeneration after injury (Tsukamoto et al. 2018; Ohno et al. 2019).