A Comparative Study of Early versus Conventional delay in Postoperative oral intake in Women undergoing Cesarean Section under regional anaesthesia

Abstract

The rate of cesarean delivery is increasing around the world. A traditional graduated dietary regimen, “nothing by mouth” for 24 hours, or until the presence of bowel sounds or passing flatus is still practised after cesarean delivery. In recent studies, an early oral intake has been recommended instead of the traditional dietary regimen for women after cesarean delivery. Our study aims at comparing the safety and efficacy of early versus conventional post-operative oral intake in patients undergoing caesarean section under regional anaesthesia. It is a prospective comparative study involving 308 patients (153 in study group and 155 in the control group) with strict inclusion and exclusion criteria. The outcomes assessed included incidence of paralytic ileus, time interval for bowel movements to appear, duration of intravenous fluid administration and length of hospital stay. In our study none of the patients in the study group developed ileus and 6.44% in the control group had ileus. Women in the early feeding group had a more rapid return of bowel function, with a substantially shorter mean postoperative time interval to the first active bowel movement. The duration of intravenous fluid administration in the study group was lesser and was statistically significant.. This study also confirmed that the early feeding regimen for patients after uncomplicated cesarean section was well tolerated. Also it offers other benefits to the patients such as less suffering from thirst and hunger, shorter hospital stay and reduced hospital expenses. Further studies with larger sample sizes may be needed to confirm the above observations with statistical significance.