Ultrasound-Based Intestinal Cleansing Protocol for Critically Ill Adult Patients

Abstract Aims and Objectives: To investigate the application of ultrasound in intestinal cleansing for critically ill adult patients. Patients: A total of 49 critically ill patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) from December 2020 to April 2022 were selected and then randomly divided into a control group and an intervention group, with 25 cases in the control group and 24 cases in the intervention group. Design and Methods: The control group was offered routine intestinal cleansing measures, while the intervention group was given targeted laxatives, catharsis, or motility-promoting drugs according to the results of a gastrointestinal ultrasound evaluation. Before intervention and 24 hours after intervention, we compared several features between the two groups, including the transverse diameters of the ascending colon and the descending colon, time of first defecation, defecation frequency, number of defecations, and the abdominal circumferences of the ascending colon and the descending colon. Results: After intervention, the transverse diameters ofthe ascending colon and the descending colon in the intervention group were 3.21±0.39 cm and 3.09±0.26 cm, respectively, which were lower than those in the control group ( P < 0.05). Additionally, in the intervention group, the first defecation time and abdominal circumference were lower than in the control group ( P < 0.05), while the total number of defecations and the number of defecations within 24 hours were higher than in the control group ( P < 0.05). There was a significant difference between the two groups regarding abdominal circumference. Conclusions: The ultrasound-based ICU enteric cleansing program achieves satisfactory intestinal cleansing and relieves the pain of patients with multiple enemas through accurate evaluation and targeted cleansing, which makes it worthy of promotion and application.