Key result
Fasting before abdominal ultrasound only slightly improves biliary image quality versus non-fasting.
Why the study?
The influence of fasting and other factors on image quality during upper abdominal ultrasonography was unclear.
Does fasting prior to upper abdominal ultrasonography improve image quality in patients?
RCT (n=226)
Blind
Does fasting prior to upper abdominal ultrasonography improve image quality in patients?
Upper abdominal ultrasound can generally be performed without fasting, as image quality is primarily determined by other factors such as body build.
May support omitting routine fasting before upper abdominal ultrasonography; hypothesis-generating for tailored protocols by body build and demographics.
A controlled blind study of 226 patients was performed to determine the advantages of fasting prior to upper abdominal ultrasonography (US) as well as the influence of other factors on image quality. The ratio of weight to height (a reflection of body build) was found to most often correlate negatively with image quality for all organs, followed by age for the biliary tract, pancreas, and kidneys and sex (in males) for the pancreas. Only the biliary tract was shown slightly better as the result of fasting. Images obtained during the afternoon tended to be somewhat better. The authors conclude that upper abdominal US can be performed at any time in patients who have not fasted, as it is primarily other factors that determine image quality. Only if evaluation of the biliary tract is inconclusive need the patient be reexamined after fasting.
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Windler et al. (1985) conducted an RCT in Patients undergoing upper abdominal ultrasonography (n=226). Fasting prior to upper abdominal ultrasonography vs. Not fasting was evaluated on Image quality. Fasting prior to upper abdominal ultrasonography only slightly improved image quality for the biliary tract, while body build, age, and sex were more significant determinants of overall image quality.
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