Measuring the Effect of a Pre-operative High-Carbohydrate Drink on Unilateral Primary Total Hip and Knee Arthroplasty Patients.

The article aims to examine the effect of a pre-operative high-carbohydrate drink (HCD) on unilateral, primary total hip arthroplasty and total knee arthroplasty patients by measuring post-operative antiemetic medication use and length of stay in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU). The study used a quasi-experimental cohort design using a historical control group. We compared the intervention group who consumed the pre-operative HCD, to a historical control group, 1 year prior, who did not. The intervention group had more females (62%), was more likely to have spinal anesthesia, and was less likely to receive preoperative antiemetic medications (odds ratio (OR) = 0.41; confidence interval (95% CI): 0.21, 0.79) and postoperative antiemetics (OR = 0.48; 95% CI: 0.29, 0.81). The intervention group's PACU stay was 10.1 min shorter (p < .0001) than the control group. Patients who consumed HCDs exhibited decreased PACU stay and decreased antiemetic medication use. These findings were used to change institutional preoperative policies for orthopedic patients to enhance outcomes.