Effect of Preoperative Oral Carbohydrate Intake on Perioperative Hyperglycemia in Indian Patients Undergoing Hip Fracture Fixation.

OBJECTIVE: Preoperative fasting leads to a catabolic state aggravated by surgical stress. This leads to poor patient outcomes. This study aimed to determine the effect of preoperative oral carbohydrate administration on perioperative hyperglycemia and patient comfort.

METHODS: This prospective, randomized study was conducted on 60 adult American Society of Anesthesiologist I/II patients undergoing hip fracture fixation after obtaining institutional ethical committee clearance. Patients were randomly kept conventionally fasted before surgery (group F, n = 30) or were given oral carbohydrate 2 h before surgery (group C, n = 30). Under all aseptic precautions, a combined spinal epidural block was administered, and surgery was allowed. The primary outcome was blood glucose, and secondary outcomes included incidence of postoperative hyperglycemia, insulin level, blood urea, hunger, thirst, and anxiety.

RESULTS: Blood glucose levels were not statistically different between the two groups at baseline (T0; P =0.400), immediately after surgery (T1; P =0.399) and 24h after surgery (T2; P =0.619). The incidence of postoperative hyperglycemia was significantly higher in group F than in group C ( P =0.045) at T2. Insulin levels, blood urea levels, and hunger scores were also not statistically different between the groups. The thirst and anxiety scores were lower at T0 and T1 in group C.

CONCLUSION: Preoperative oral carbohydrate administration does not prevent perioperative increases in blood glucose levels. However, it reduces the incidence of perioperative hyperglycemia and decreases perioperative thirst and anxiety, thereby improving the quality of perioperative patient care.