NPO after midnight before elective surgery is no longer common practice for the majority of anesthesiologists.

Abstract

One thousand three hundred thirty-seven anesthesiologists randomly selected from the current American Society of Anesthesiologists' directory were surveyed to discover if their attitudes toward the policy of allowing preoperative patients nothing by mouth (NPO) have changed. One thousand forty surveys were returned. For each response to a survey question, the percentage of respondents giving that response was calculated. The 95% confidence intervals for these percentages were calculated by using the normal approximation of a binomial distribution. Chi-square analyses were used to explore possible relationships between demographic factors and NPO orders. Nearly all anesthesiologists surveyed used less than an 8-hour fast for elective pediatric surgery. At least 50% of the anesthesiologists surveyed no longer use NPO after midnight as an order for elective surgery for adults. Of the demographic variables, only geography and the question of whether or not a hospital was a teaching institution were statistically related to NPO practice.