Short-Stay Aggressive Hydration to Prevent Post-ERCP Pancreatitis (PuSH)

August 18, 2026 updated by: Nicholas Burgess, Westmead Hospital

Preventing Post ERCP Pancreatitis by Short Stay Aggressive Hydration (PuSH) -a Prospective Randomized Trial.

Post-ERCP pancreatitis (PEP) is the most common serious adverse event after endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), occurring in roughly 7-15% of patients. Rectal non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and peri-procedural aggressive intravenous hydration each reduce PEP, but published hydration regimens are delivered over 8-24 hours and require an overnight hospital stay, which is impractical where ERCP is increasingly performed as a same-day procedure.

This multicentre, prospective, randomised controlled trial tests whether a short (under 4 hours) aggressive hydration regimen with Lactated Ringer's solution, combined with rectal indomethacin, is superior to standard care (rectal indomethacin plus low-volume hydration) for preventing PEP, while supporting same-day discharge. Adults undergoing ERCP are randomised 1:1. The primary outcome is the incidence of PEP defined by consensus (Cotton) criteria. A total of 1300 participants (650 per arm) will be enrolled.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Design: multicentre, parallel-group, superiority RCT with 1:1 allocation, conducted in high-volume tertiary academic endoscopy units.

Interventions: All participants receive 100 mg indomethacin per rectum within 30 minutes before or after ERCP. Participants randomised to aggressive hydration receive a peri-procedural bolus of Lactated Ringer's 20 mL/kg over ~1 hour, then 3 mL/kg/hour for 3 hours (post-procedure infusion capped at 1000 mL). Participants randomised to standard care receive low-volume Lactated Ringer's at the discretion of the endoscopist/anaesthetist (up to 1.5 mL/kg/hour, max 500 mL over 3 hours). For BMI > 40 kg/m2, infusion rates are capped assuming a BMI of 40. Pancreatic duct stenting is permitted in both arms at the proceduralist's discretion per guidelines. Aggressive hydration is discontinued if signs of fluid overload develop.

Follow-up: pre-discharge assessment (fluid-overload exam, pain), a 24-hour telephone follow-up (bloods if symptomatic), and a 30-day telephone follow-up for delayed events and hospitalisation.

Analysis: primary analysis by intention-to-treat; per-protocol analysis also performed. Statistical analysis is conducted blinded to allocation.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

1300

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age over 18 years
  • Undergoing ERCP
  • Able to provide informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Unable to give consent
  • Clinical signs/symptoms of congestive cardiac failure (pitting oedema, NYHA class ≥ 2, or oxygen saturation ≤ 90%)
  • Respiratory failure (pre-procedure SpO2 < 90% on room air, or requirement for non-invasive/mechanical ventilation)
  • Contraindication to rectal NSAIDs (allergy; active gastrointestinal bleeding)
  • Estimated GFR (MDRD) ≤ 30 mL/min
  • Altered biliary or duodenal anatomy (e.g. prior biliary/pancreatic surgery, Roux-en-Y reconstruction)
  • Known hypo- or hypernatraemia (serum sodium < 130 or > 150 mmol/L)
  • Pregnancy
  • Severe liver disease (cirrhosis with ascites)
  • Previous sphincterotomy (unless undergoing pancreatic duct intervention)
  • Acute pancreatitis
  • Chronic pancreatitis (unless undergoing a pancreatic duct intervention)
  • Sphincter of Oddi dysfunction
  • Pancreatic mass causing biliary obstruction

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Prevention
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Aggressive Hydration
Rectal indomethacin 100 mg plus short-stay aggressive hydration: Lactated Ringer's bolus 20 mL/kg over ~1 hour, then 3 mL/kg/hour for 3 hours (post-procedure infusion capped at 1000 mL).
Other: Short-Stay Aggressive Hydration
Lactated Ringer's bolus 20 mL/kg over ~1 hour then 3 mL/kg/hour x 3 hours (cap 1000 mL post-procedure); rate capped at BMI 40 if BMI > 40.
Drug: Rectal Indomethacin
Indomethacin 100 mg per rectum within 30 minutes before, during or after ERCP.
Active Comparator: Standard Care
Rectal indomethacin 100 mg plus standard low-volume hydration at proceduralist/anaesthetist discretion (Lactated Ringer's up to 1.5 mL/kg/hour, max 500 mL over 3 hours).
Drug: Rectal Indomethacin
Indomethacin 100 mg per rectum within 30 minutes before, during or after ERCP.
Other: Standard Peri-procedural Hydration
Low-volume Lactated Ringer's at operator discretion, up to 1.5 mL/kg/hour, max 500 mL over 3 hours.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Incidence of post-ERCP pancreatitis (PEP)
Time Frame: Within 72 hours after ERCP (onset within 24 hours)
PEP defined by consensus (Cotton) criteria, requiring ALL of: new or worsened upper abdominal pain; serum amylase or lipase at least 3x the upper limit of normal; pain and enzyme elevation persisting for at least 24 hours; and hospitalisation (or prolongation) of at least 2 days attributable to pancreatitis.
Within 72 hours after ERCP (onset within 24 hours)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
PEP not fulfilling full Cotton criteria
Time Frame: Within 72 hours after ERCP (onset within 24 hours)
Post-ERCP pancreatitis not meeting full Cotton criteria.
Within 72 hours after ERCP (onset within 24 hours)
Delayed PEP
Time Frame: 24 hours to 30 days after ERCP
Post-ERCP pancreatitis (by Cotton criteria) with onset more than 24 hours after ERCP, identified after initial discharge.
24 hours to 30 days after ERCP
Severity of PEP
Time Frame: Within 30 days after ERCP
Severity graded by Cotton criteria and the Revised Atlanta Classification
Within 30 days after ERCP
ERCP associated adverse events
Time Frame: Within 30 days after ERCP
ERCP-associated adverse events graded by consensus (Cotton) criteria as mild, moderate, or severe: bleeding, perforation, and infection (cholangitis).
Within 30 days after ERCP
Signs of fluid overload
Time Frame: Peri-procedural to 24 hours after ERCP
Pulmonary oedema, peripheral (pitting) oedema, or exacerbation of congestive cardiac failure.
Peri-procedural to 24 hours after ERCP
Hospitalization for any reason within 30 days
Time Frame: Within 30 days after ERCP
Proportion of participants hospitalised (including unplanned admission or readmission) for any reason within 30 days of ERCP. Ascertained from medical records and the 30-day follow-up call.
Within 30 days after ERCP
Cost effectiveness
Time Frame: Within 30 days after ERCP
Cost-effectiveness of short-stay aggressive hydration versus standard care, comparing total cost of healthcare resource use (intravenous fluids and consumables, procedure/recovery time, length of stay, and PEP-related admissions or readmissions) in relation to PEP cases avoided. Reported as incremental cost effectiveness ratio (ICER) for post-ERCP pancreatitis cases avoided.
Within 30 days after ERCP
Hospitalization Length of Stay
Time Frame: Within 30 days of ERCP
In participants hospitalised (including unplanned admission or readmission) for any reason within 30 days of ERCP, the length of hospital stay measured in days. Ascertained from medical records and the 30-day follow-up call.
Within 30 days of ERCP
Hospitalization for PEP Length of Stay
Time Frame: Within 30 days of ERCP
In participants hospitalised (including unplanned admission or readmission) for PEP within 30 days of ERCP, the length of hospital stay measured in days. Ascertained from medical records and the 30-day follow-up call.
Within 30 days of ERCP

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Westmead Hospital

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Nicholas Burgess, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Westmead Hospital, Sydney, Australia

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

June 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

December 1, 2028

Study Completion (Estimated)

June 1, 2029

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

August 5, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 18, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

August 20, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

August 20, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 18, 2026

Last Verified

August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 2019/ETH13255

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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