Gastric dilation and volvulus (GDV) is classed under which ASA grade?

• A. II or 2
• B. V or 5
• C. III or 3
• D. IV or 4

Answer: (B)

Gastric dilation and volvulus is an acute, life-threatening emergency that often presents with shock and rapidly deteriorating perfusion. The ASA physical status system grades the patient’s overall risk before anesthesia, and ASA V corresponds to a moribund patient not expected to survive without the operation. In GDV, immediate stabilization and emergency surgery are needed, and many patients arrive critically ill, sometimes in hypovolemic shock with organ dysfunction. This makes them fit ASA V (often written as V with the emergency modifier, V E). Other grades describe less severe systemic disease or stable conditions, which would not reflect the urgent, high-risk nature of GDV.