Beam, W Brian

BACKGROUND: The use of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) has significantly increased in recent years. GLP-1 RAs delay gastric emptying, resulting in early satiety and weight loss. This may increase the risk of pulmonary aspiration of residual gastric contents (RGC) during anesthesia delivery. Evidence is urgently needed to guide perioperative anesthesia management for patients taking GLP-1 RAs. This study evaluated preoperative factors that may be associated with high RGC. METHODS: Adult patients who were taking GLP-1 RAs and scheduled to receive anesthesia at 3 hospitals between June 30, 2023, and August 15, 2024, were evaluated via preoperative point-of-care gastric ultrasonography (GUS). The primary outcome was high RGC, defined by the presence of solids food or >1.5 mL/kg of clear liquids on GUS, and its association with preoperative factors (eg, existing medical conditions, indication and route of taking GLP-1 RAs, length of taking GLP-1 RAs, days of withholding GLP-1 RAs before surgery, and preoperative fasting periods). Data are presented as median (interquartile range [IQR]). RESULTS: Among the 316 patients (60.9 years [52.1–68.9] of age; 167 [52.8%] females) included in the study, 113 (35.8%) had high RGC. A higher percentage (5.3%; 6/113) of patients in the high RGC group had an opioid prescription for pain management within 3 months of the GUS assessment compared to the low RGC group (1.0%; 2/203; P = .027). No statistical difference was found between the groups in other existing medical conditions, indication and route of taking GLP-1 RAs, and length of taking GLP-1 RAs. Of the 294 patients taking weekly injections, there were 187 (63.6%) with low RGC and 107 (36.4%) with high RGC. Patients with low RGC withheld their GLP-1 RAs for 8 days [5–10], while patients with high RGC withheld for 6 days [3–9] ( P = .003). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis found ≤7.5 days of withholding the medication as cutoff for increased prevalence of high RGC in patients taking GLP-1 RA injections. Patients with low RGC fasted from solid food for 20.0 hours [14.8–40.8], and patients with high RGC fasted from solid food for 15.0 hours [12.8–19.0] ( P < .001). ROC found ≤21.3 hours of fasting from solid food as the cutoff for increased prevalence of high RGC. CONCLUSIONS: GLP-1 RA usage may delay gastric emptying. In preoperatively fasting adults, ≤7.5 days of withholding injections and ≤21.3 hours of fasting from solid food are associated with high RGC.

Importance Anemia is a common complication of surgery and acute illness that is associated with adverse clinical outcomes. The role of anemia prevention and treatment strategies in this setting remains unclear. Objective To evaluate the effect of a multifaceted anemia management bundle vs standard care on posthospitalization hemoglobin recovery and multidimensional functional outcomes in survivors of acute illness. Design, Setting, and Participants This parallel group randomized clinical trial, known as the Practical Anemia Bundle for Sustained Blood Recovery, was conducted at postsurgical and medical intensive care units at a large US medical center. Critically ill patients (aged ≥18 years) with moderate to severe anemia (hemoglobin concentration &amp;lt;10 g/dL) were enrolled between March 2022 and November 2023. Participants were randomly assigned 1:1 to the intervention or standard care group. Intention-to-treat analyses were performed between July 2024 and January 2025. Intervention The intervention bundle was delivered throughout the duration of hospitalization and included optimized phlebotomy practices, clinical decision support, and pharmacological anemia treatment with intravenous iron. Main Outcomes and Measures The primary outcome was the mean difference in hemoglobin concentration at 1 month after hospital discharge. Results A total of 100 patients (median [IQR] age, 68 [61-72] years; 57 men [57.0%]; 65 [65.0%] with postsurgical admission to the intensive care unit) were enrolled during acute illness. Forty-nine patients (49.0%) were assigned to receive the intervention, and 51 (51.0%) were assigned to receive standard care. Hemoglobin concentration at 1 month after discharge was greater in patients receiving the intervention vs standard care (median [IQR], 12.2 [11.8-13.0] g/dL vs 11.5 [10.2-12.6] g/dL; adjusted mean difference, 0.69 [95% CI, 0.13-1.20] g/dL; P = .02). Conclusions and Relevance This randomized clinical trial found that a multifaceted anemia prevention and treatment bundle was feasible, was well tolerated, and improved posthospitalization hemoglobin concentrations up to 3 months in critically ill adults. These findings can inform the design of future trials. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05167734