Abstract
Objective: To present scientific studies on preoperative fasting abbreviation in elective surgeries, the most frequent surgeries and nutritional supplementation where this procedure was used. Methods: Systematic review of articles in Portuguese and English from 2005 to 2018, in the Science, PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, and Google Scholar databases, using the following descriptors: preoperative fasting, elective surgery, preoperative surgery, nutrition in surgery and ACERTO protocol. Jadad scale was used to assess the methodological quality of clinical trials. Results: 53 articles were consulted, 31 were selected. A shortened preoperative fast for elective surgeries with carbohydrate-enriched beverages up to two hours before the procedure is safe, decreases insulin resistance, metabolic stress, improves well-being, decreases length of stay and costs. Glutamine and whey protein are promising nutrients. Main surgeries: cholecystectomy, oncologic, abdominal, maxillofacial, cardiac, pediatric and orthopedic surgeries. Results on the Jadad scale indicated that 54% of the studies scored 3 and 38% 5, which indicates good methodological quality from these studies. Final considerations: Abbreviation of preoperative fasting should be encouraged among professionals for the demonstrated benefits and attest to use-based medicine.