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British Journal of Anaesthesia, 2001, Vol. 86, No. 6 869-871
© 2001 The Board of Management and Trustees of the British Journal of Anaesthesia

Gastric residual volume in children: a study comparing efficiency of erythromycin and metoclopramide as prokinetic agents

T. F. Zatman, J. E. Hall and M. Harmer

Department of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine, University of Wales College of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XN, UK*Corresponding author

Metoclopramide may be used to stimulate gastric emptying when anaesthetizing children for emergency operations. Unfortunately, metoclopramide is associated with extrapyramidal side effects. Erythromycin, a motilin receptor agonist, is a prokinetic agent but its use has been little investigated in children. This randomized double-blind study compared the effects of premedication with oral metoclopramide 0.15 mg kg–1 or erythromycin 1 mg kg–1 on gastric emptying in 80 children undergoing tonsillectomy. Pre-operative fluids, premedication and anaesthetic technique were standardized and gastric volume was measured with an orogastric tube. Post-operative nausea and vomiting was recorded. Metoclopramide and erythromycin produced similar gastric volumes (0.29 and 0.24 ml kg–1) and there was no difference in post-operative vomiting. In the erythromycin group there were more patients with negative aspirates (45.9%) than in the metoclopramide group (35.1%), but the difference was not statistically significant. These results indicate that erythromycin may be as effective as metoclopramide as a prokinetic agent.

Br J Anaesth 2001; 86: 869–71


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C. M. Bolton, P. S. Myles, T. Nolan, and J. A. Sterne
Prophylaxis of postoperative vomiting in children undergoing tonsillectomy: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Br. J. Anaesth., November 1, 2006; 97(5): 593 - 604.
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