title: The Clinical Use of Intravenous Acetaminophen Postoperatively on Patients Who Have Undergone Bowel Surgery.
abstract: The purpose of this quality improvement project was to determine the effect of using IV acetaminophen postoperatively for 48 hours or until a return to a general diet in adult patients who have undergone bowel surgery at a Midwestern hospital. The sample included 50 adults who underwent bowel surgery and a comparison group of 50 adult patients of the same surgeons who received usual care before the intervention period. Outcome measures included the number of narcotic requests after surgery and the number of hours from the end surgical time to (1) first bowel movement, (2) return to a general diet, (3) first hallway ambulation, and (4) discharge. The data analysis revealed a significant improvement in the time to ambulation (acetaminophen group, 14.46 hours versus 30.51 hours; P = .036). The results of this project inform current postoperative care management at the Midwestern hospital in which the project was conducted.
authors.forename: Kristi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ziolkowski
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kaufman
authors.forename: Jaya
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jambunathan
authors.forename: Jon
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Berge
authors.forename: Luke
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Menet
authors.forename: Sharon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chappy
authors.forename: Marci
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Messerschmidt
mesh_terms: D000082:Acetaminophen / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D000328:Adult; D003106:Colon / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D007262:Infusions, Intravenous; D011182:Postoperative Care
chemical_list: D000082:Acetaminophen
keywords: bowel surgery; intravenous acetaminophen; pain management; quality improvement