• Hanna Andersson, Per M Hellström, and Peter Frykholm.
• Department of Surgical Sciences, Section of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care, Uppsala University Hospital, Uppsala, Sweden.
• Paediatr Anaesth. 2018 Jan 1; 28 (1): 46-52.

BackgroundChildren often starve for longer than recommended by current preoperative fasting guidelines.AimsWe studied the effects of implementing a more lenient fasting regimen on the duration of clear fluid fasting, as well as the incidence of extended fasting in children.MethodsPreoperative duration of clear fluid fasting was recorded for patients scheduled for procedures in a unit applying the standard 6-4-2 fasting regimen. This group was compared with a cohort in the same unit 1 year after transitioning to a 6-4-0 fasting regimen. The latter includes no limitations on clear fluid intake until the child is called to theater. A third cohort from a unit in which the 6-4-0 fasting regimen has been implemented for over a decade was also studied for comparison.ResultsPatients fasting according to the 6-4-2 fasting regimen (n = 66) had a median fasting time for clear fluids of 4.0 h and a 33.3% incidence of fasting more than 6 h. After transitioning to the 6-4-0 fasting regimen (n = 64), median duration of fasting for clear fluids decreased to 1.0 h, and the incidence of fasting more than 6 h decreased to 6.3%. In the second unit (n = 73), median fasting time was 2.2 h and the proportion of patients fasting more than 6 h was 21.9%.ConclusionThe introduction and implementation of the 6-4-0 fasting regimen reduces median fluid fasting duration and the number of children subjected to extended fasting.© 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

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