Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1RA) therapies are increasingly used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus and obesity. Despite growing awareness of potentially increased risk of pulmonary aspiration due to delayed gastric emptying, the risks and benefits of their perioperative use in patients undergoing cardiac procedures remains unexplored. A scoping review was performed to investigate the perioperative GLP-1RA use in patients undergoing cardiac procedures and recommendations.

PubMed and Ovid MEDLINE were searched up to April 2024 to identify English-language studies on the perioperative use of weekly and daily dosed GLP-1RAs in adult patients undergoing cardiac procedures (including cardiac surgery, trans-oesophageal echocardiograms, and cardiac catheterisation procedures).

Three studies were identified, which investigated daily dosed GLP-1RAs in patients undergoing cardiac surgery. No studies were found investigating GLP-1RA use in cardiac catheterisation or trans-oesophageal echocardiograms procedures, and none which specifically examined risk of pulmonary aspiration in patients using GLP-1RAs undergoing cardiac procedures.

GLP-1RAs are beneficial for perioperative weight loss, glycaemic control, and cardiovascular health. Existing guidelines and consensus recommendations are highly contradictory on perioperative GLP-1RA management. Although no known published case reports exist to date of pulmonary aspiration in patients using GLP-1RAs undergoing cardiac procedures, non-cardiac surgical literature strongly suggests that patients are at theoretical risk and a cautious approach is advised in the absence of robust evidence informing recommendations for optimal withholding periods.