Study of early feeding after general anesthesia in school-age children after orthopaedic surgery / 中华护理杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To evaluate the safety and feasibility of early feeding in children after orthopaedic surgery.Methods Totally 638 children with general anesthesia after orthopaedic surgery in a tertiary hospital in Beijing were recruited and divided into two groups.Children in the experimental group (n=315) started water drinking and feeding if they passed the postoperative assessment on consciousness and digestive function,while children in the control group (n=323) adhered to the conventional protocol of 6h fasting postoperatively.Results The average initial time of water drinking,liquid food feeding and general diet in the experimental group were 0.63 h,1.03 h and 3.07 h,while they were 6.42 h,6.88 h and 8.79 h in the control group,and the differences were statistically significant (P＜0.001).There were no significant differences in the incidence,severity and frequency of postoperative nausea and vomiting between two groups in 6h and 24h after returning to wards(P＞0.05).At 6h after returning to wards,the incidences of moderate-to-severe thirst and hunger in the experimental group were significantly lower than those in the control group(P＜0.001),and pain scored over 3 marks was lower than the control group(P=0.002).Conclusion Children after orthopaedic surgery with general anesthesia are likely to drink water 1 h after returning to wards and then take general diet 2h later while comprehensive prevention measures being adopted.Early teeding would not aggravate postoperative nausea and voniting and can alleviate the extent of postoperative thirst,hunger and pain.