Evaluation of Gastric Emptying by Ultrasonography after Recommended Fasting Period and Administration of Prokinetic in End-stage Renal Disease Patients

BACKGROUND: Delayed gastric emptying is observed in end-stage renal disease (ESRD). AIMS: Evaluation of gastric emptying after recommended fasting period and on oral administration of prokinetic in ESRD patients using ultrasonography (USG). SETTINGS AND DESIGN: Randomized, double-blind, prospective, controlled study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: After institutional ethics committee approval, 200 patients were divided randomly into two equal groups. Three sessions of USG evaluation of gastric antrum were done in supine and right lateral position for assessing gastric emptying, first at 8 am, second after the light meal at 8.30 am, and third after 6 h of light meal. Group A received placebo (sugar-coated pill) and Group B received tablet metoclopramide hydrochloride 10 mg after second session of USG. In each session, measurement of anteroposterior and craniocaudal diameters of gastric antrum was done, and then cross-sectional area was estimated. Three-point grading system (Perlas) was used to perform qualitative evaluation. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Comparison of normally distributed continuous variables was performed using Student's t-test. Nominal categorical data were compared using Chi-squared test. Nonnormal distribution continuous variables were compared using Mann–Whitney U-test. RESULTS: 6 h of fasting after light meal showed that Group A only had 14% incidence of complete gastric emptying, whereas Group B had 71% as compared by Perlas grading. Gastric antral cross-sectional area measured both in supine (480.89 ± 84.92) and right lateral (575.40 ± 92.62) position of Group A was more than Group B supine (394.15 ± 62.80) and right lateral (470.25 ± 73.63) position (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: USG of ESRD patients preoperatively can evaluate gastric contents to assess risk of pulmonary aspiration and guide anesthetic management. Metoclopramide is a good drug to enhance gastric emptying in ESRD patients within the recommended fasting period.