Early Aggressive Hydration Is Associated with Decreased Opioid Use and Readmission in Mild Acute Pancreatitis.

Background: Acute pancreatitis (AP) is one of the most common causes of hospital admissions due to gastrointestinal disorders. No pharmacologic agents have been proven to impact the prognosis, and the treatment still remains supportive with intravenous fluids for hydration. Although early hydration has been recommended for the management of mild AP, there is no consensus on the type, rate, and amount of the fluid replacement.

Objective: In this study, we aimed to investigate the outcome of aggressive hydration in patients with AP.

Methods: Retrospective data from patients admitted to 12 hospitals (2015-2017) was used for analysis. Five hundred patients who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria for mild AP were included. The subjects were classified into 3 groups based on the amount of intravenous fluids they received in the first 12 hours of admission: Hydration group A (0-1.5 ml/kg/h), Hydration group B (>1.5-3 ml/kg/h) and Hydration group C (>3 ml/kg/h). Laboratory test results on the second day of admission, length of stay (LOS) and opioid analgesic use on the last day were analyzed using a Chi-square test. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Results: Patients with aggressive hydration (>3 ml/kg/h) had a greater reduction in creatinine (mean difference = -0.05, p = 0.017) compared to those who received standard hydration (0-1.5 ml/kg/h). There was no significant difference in LOS among the three hydration groups. Patients with aggressive hydration were less likely to use opioid analgesics on the last day of hospitalization (23.9% vs. 35.3%, p = 0.044) compared to standard hydration. Patients with hydration were less likely to experience a readmission for any reason within 30 days (Odds ratio (OR) = 1.603, 95% CI, 1.064-2.414, p = 0.024) compared to those who received low hydration.

Conclusions: Our findings showed that less narcotics were required for the patients receiving aggressive hydration in mild AP. On the other hand, early aggressive hydration is not widely implemented in community hospitals, despite beneficial effects.