EJMS

Abstract

Aim: To access whether coffee consumption in immediate post cesarean period in addition to routine care accelerates the recovery of gastrointestinal motility. Patients and Methods: A randomized controlled study was conducted from October 2014 to March 2015. Women scheduled to undergo elective cesarean section (CS) were assigned to drink coffee beside routine care immediately post cesarean or routine care alone after CS. Women's postoperative charts were reviewed to establish incidence of postoperative nausea, vomiting, use of analgesics, use of antiemetics, cases developing postoperative ileus (POI) (nausea, vomiting, distention, absence of intestinal sound) and its degree mild (resolved spontaneously on basic support), moderate (needing insertion of nasogastric tube beside basic support), severe (POI that resist management lines including antiemetic, different anti ileus intervention for more than 2 days), time to discharge and time from end of surgery to first postoperative hearing intestinal sounds, toleration of fluids intake, toleration of solid food intake, passage of flatus as well as first defecation. Results: A total of 210 women were randomly assigned to drink coffee (n = 105, 8 were excluded, 97 were available for intension to treat analysis) or routine post cesarean care alone (n = 105, 7 were excluded 98 were available for intension to treat analysis). The mean time to flatus, defecation, intestinal sound as well as first hunger, toleration of liquids and solids were significantly shorter in women whom assigned to drink coffee beside routine care (P < 0.0001, P < 0.0001, P = 0.033, P < 0.0001, P < 0.0001, P < 0.0001 respectively). Women assigned to drink coffee were associated with significantly less post cesarean nausea (P = 0.0072), vomiting (P = 0.0093) and POI [(7/97 (7.21%) VS 22/98 (22.44%), (P = 0.002)]. Coffee consumption in immediate post cesarean period was well tolerated and well accepted by women and not associated with side effects. Conclusion: Drinking coffee in immediate post cesarean period accelerates the time of gut recovery, shortened the length of hospital stay as well as reduce the incidence of POI. This simple, inexpensive and well tolerated intervention could added to routine post cesarean care.