Author: Kelly Huitson, RVN, BSc (Hons)

Kelly obtained a BSc (Hons) degree in animal behaviour and welfare before qualifying as an RVN in 2017. She has also completed the BVNA oral care nursing course and Advanced Programme in Veterinary Nursing certificates in small mammal and herpetology. Kelly has worked in first opinion, emergency and referral practices, and is now based in Alderney in the Channel Islands. She has several clinical interests, including wildlife, exotics, analgesia and dental, and enjoys the variety and scope of her role. In her spare time Kelly volunteers for British Divers Marine Life Rescue, pampers her three cats and goes on beach walks with her two dogs

DOI: https://doi.org/10.56496/UEAB4176A

ABSTRACT: Pre-anaesthetic starvation protocols have been mainstays of routine surgeries and procedures to prevent vomiting and increased anaesthesia risks, while postoperative starvation has, in the past, been common for gastrointestinal surgery patients. This literature review considers the current guidelines for appropriate starvation periods in the perioperative period and the effect of inadequate nutrition on healing, as well as obstacles to managing a patient’s appropriate nutritional status.
Keywords: anaesthetic, surgery, starvation period, reflux, vomiting, healing, nutrition

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