how long are you npo before back surgery
Surgery can be delayed, medications can be given to help reduce the acidity and volume of stomach contents, or maneuvers may be employed to protect from aspiration, for example placing a cuffed endotracheal tube into the trachea.y placing a patient on NPO status, there will be nothing to aspirate because any food would have been absorbed into the small intestines by that time of surgery 6-8 hrs later. + 23 others found this useful.