Unexpectedly prolonged fasting and its consequences on elderly patients undergoing spinal anesthetics. A prospective observational study

PURPOSE: To measure the preoperative fasting durations with respect to time of the day and its effect on vital parameters and electrocardiogram in elderly patients undergoing surgery under spinal anesthesia. METHODS: This study investigated 211 patients older than 60 years undergoing elective surgery under spinal anesthesia. Patients scheduled for surgery in morning hours (AM) and afternoon hours (PM) were compared. Patients fasting hours and repeated measurements of mean arterial pressure (MAP), heart rate (HR), peripheral oxygen saturation (Sp02) and the type and number of ischemic electrocardiogram (ECG) signs were recorded and compared [preoperative, zeroth, 2nd,5th,15th,30th minutes following spinal anesthesia(SA)]. RESULTS: Mean fasting durations were 12±2.8 and 9.5±2.1 hours in AM group and 15.5±3.4 12.7±4.4 hours in PM group for foods and liquids respectively. ECG changes were significantly more frequent in PM group and body temperatures were significantly higher in AM group patients. CONCLUSION: Our study has shown that fasting times in our population is far longer than recommended and fasting prolonged>15 hours is related to a transiently increased cardiac stress and mild hypothermia.