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Current developments regarding perioperative fasting guidelines for children: an overview

Christiane E Beck1, Vanessa Rigterink2

  • 1Clinic of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany - beck.christiane@mh-hannover.de.

Minerva Anestesiologica
|May 8, 2026
PubMed

Insights

Updated guidelines for preoperative fasting in children offer liberalized recommendations based on new evidence. This review confirms these findings and discusses risks of delayed gastric emptying in pediatric patients.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Anesthesiology
  • Critical Care Medicine
  • Perioperative Care

Background:

  • The European Society of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine updated its guideline on preoperative fasting for children in 2022.
  • This revision acknowledged the unique physiological needs of pediatric patients.
  • Previous guidelines were often overly restrictive for children.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To provide an updated overview of perioperative fasting recommendations for children.
  • To incorporate recent studies supporting liberalized fasting protocols.
  • To identify and discuss risk factors for delayed gastric emptying in pediatric surgical patients.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of studies published since the 2022 guideline.
  • Analysis of evidence supporting updated fasting recommendations.
  • Review of clinical data on risk constellations for delayed gastric emptying.

Main Results:

  • Numerous studies published since 2022 corroborate the liberalized preoperative fasting recommendations for children.
  • The updated evidence strengthens the basis for current guidelines.
  • Specific risk factors contributing to delayed gastric emptying in pediatric populations have been further elucidated.

Conclusions:

  • The liberalized preoperative fasting guidelines for children are well-supported by recent scientific evidence.
  • Healthcare providers should be aware of the updated recommendations and the rationale behind them.
  • Understanding risk factors for delayed gastric emptying is crucial for optimizing pediatric perioperative care.

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