What happens if you eat before anesthetic

What kind of fluids are we talking about that are OK to consume before surgery? Clear liquids—something you can see through. Some options include apple juice, Gatorade, black coffee, or tea without any milk or cream.

Are certain foods also being considered? For that reason, we still ask patients to refrain from drinking milk or eating any food for eight hours prior to the surgery. Milk is a protein and still has a lot of fat in it, so the digestive system takes longer to process it than other fluids. If a patient wants to eat before the procedure, we recommend toast and crackers, and we recommend that this be eaten 8 hours before the procedure.

What differences do you see in patients based on the different approach? They use less IV fluid, and depending on what they drink, they have better metabolism. How does the Preoperative Assessment Center incorporate this research—and other advancements—into its preoperative care? As a result, "most patients appear to still be getting outdated advice and arrive to surgery thirsty and irritable," the article said.

Here is what he said:. Having trained with a background in anesthesiology, I can assure you that the topic of pre-operative fasting is absolutely an area of interest and importance in the surgical arena. There is nothing more important to an anesthesiologist than safety. While a large majority of what we do involves keeping patients safe and comfortable during an operation, often it is our degree of preparedness and thoroughness before the case that sets us for success.

The fundamentals of a good pre-operative evaluation include an airway examination, delving into a patient's history of comorbidities, and always inquiring regarding pre-operative oral intake. It is that last part that can very quickly cause a scheduled elective surgery to be cancelled or delayed. I think the Slate article does a pretty good job reviewing the history and current situation regarding pre-operative fasting protocols in most hospitals.

It is very important that the patient know what to expect during, before, and after the procedure. The patient and I discuss the surgery — the type of anesthesia I will be using and how they will feel after the surgery. The anesthesiologist is also the last physician to confirm that you are ready for surgery. It is exceedingly important that patients honestly answer my questions so that I can decide if it is safe to proceed. One such condition is that no food or drink should be consumed after midnight before the day of the surgery.

Your stomach should be empty during surgery. An empty stomach reduces the chances of an aspiration and its complications. An aspiration is when stomach contents are expelled up the esophagus food pipe into the lungs wind pipe. An aspiration can cause significant damage. If you have ever laughed or talked while eating or drinking and inadvertently gagged, you have experienced aspiration. The only exception is that you may take necessary medications the morning of surgery with a sip of water.