Postoperative Ileus: An Algorithm for Prevention and Management
Transcription
Postoperative Ileus: An Algorithm for Prevention and Management
PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION AT PHARMACYPRACTICENEWS.COM Postoperative Ileus: A An Algorithm for Prevention and Management ll ri py ts Co gh ri re gh se MARSHA DANIEL, PHARMD, CPH Clinical Research Fellow Department of Colorectal Surgery Cleveland Clinic Florida Weston, Florida Department of Pharmacy Cleveland Clinic Florida Weston, Florida t rv BADMA BASHANKAEV, MD © du STEVEN D. WEXNER, MD Department of Surgery and Transplantation Sheba Medical Center Sackler School of Medicine Tel-Aviv, Israel Chief Academic Officer Professor and Chairman Department of Colorectal Surgery Cleveland Clinic Florida Weston, Florida ct i ib d. t e ro h no s p e i is n rw sio is he ot rm ss pe le ut un ho up wit ro G art ng n p i hi r is bl e o Pu ol h on w ah in cM on i ro M ep 09 .R 20 ed S MARAT KHAIKIN, MD ince the mid-1970s, remarkable advances have been made in anesthesiology, perioperative care, and surgical techniques that allow surgeons to perform more extensive and radical procedures using a patient-friendly approach. According to data from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS), more than 500,000 elective major abdominal operations were performed in the United States in 2006 (Table 1).1 The total cost d. I N D E P E N D E N T LY D E V E L O P E D B Y M C M A H O N P U B L I S H I N G te of these procedures exceeded $10 billion. Although new achievements have dramatically improved the quality of care and the spectrum of surgical options, many old problems, such as infection, hemorrhage, and postoperative ileus (POI) still persist and pose challenges to the medical community.2-5 Accordingly, as minimally invasive techniques and minimal access surgery have continued to improve, surgeons and other specialists have sharpened their focus on these persistent obstacles to improved patient outcomes.6 POI, or paralytic ileus, is defined as a transient, functional impairment of intestinal motility occurring after surgery.7 The most common factors associated with the development of ileus include several types of surgery (gynecologic, urologic, thoracic, orthopedic, general surgical, or colorectal surgical procedures). Abdominal surgery, postoperative opioid analgesics, prolonged sedentary recovery, and the use of inhalant anesthetics all have been reported as contributing to POI. Ileus is generally considered virtually normal or “inevitable” after most major surgical procedures. Laparotomy, which includes colorectal surgery, is one of the most frequent causes of POI; up to 40% of patients undergoing laparotomy experience POI.8,9 Reconstructive P H A R M AC Y P R AC T I C E N E WS S P E C I A L E D I T I O N • 2 0 0 9 71 Table 1. Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) 2006 A ll ri py ts Co gh ri re gh se t rv © 146: Rectal resection with CC 21,219 8.9 17,931 147: Rectal resection without CC 8,679 5.2 11,003 148: Major small and large bowel procedures with CC 211,083 11.1 22,614 149: Major small and large bowel procedures without CC 71,429 5.2 10,748 150: Peritoneal adhesiolysis with CC 56,072 9.2 17,745 151: Peritoneal adhesiolysis without CC 27,673 4.3 9,128 154: Stomach, esophageal, and duodenal procedures, age >17, with CC 42,431 12.2 27,146 22,477 3.5 9,719 155: Stomach, esophageal, and duodenal procedures, age >17, without CC ro M ep Hospital Length of Stay, Costs, $ (mean) days (mean) 09 .R 20 ed du 303: Kidney, ureter, and major bladder procedures for neoplasm 53,779 6.2 14,947 304: Kidney, ureter, and major bladder 38,747 procedures for non-neoplasia with CC 6.7 14,938 305: Kidney, ureter, and major bladder procedures for non-neoplasia without CC 26,964 2.7 9,225 353: Pelvic evisceration, radical hysterectomy, and radical vulvectomy 11,362 5.0 11,753 ct Physical, Psychological, and Economic Impacts of POI Diagnosis-Related Groups Patients (n) i ib d. t e ro h no s p e i is n rw sio is he ot rm ss pe le ut un ho up wit ro G art ng n p i hi r is bl e o Pu ol h on w ah in cM on i radical cystectomy also is associated with a high (up to 17%) rate of ileus.10 Even surgery of the hip or knee can lead to ileus, with as many as 4% of patients developing intestinal motility impairments after total hip or knee arthroplasty.11 Stany and Farley, in their review of complications in gynecologic surgery, noted that approximately 3% of patients who undergo total abdominal hysterectomy also develop POI.12 Normal bowel function requires coordination of motility, mucosal transport, and evacuatory reflexes in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. GI motility must be considered an integrated process of electrophysiologic activity—which includes smooth muscle function with neural input from the intrinsic and autonomic nervous systems—accompanied by hormonal interactions. Thus, the pathogenesis of POI is multifactorial and includes activation of inhibitory reflexes, inflammatory mediators, and endogenous and exogenous opioids.13 te Physiologic awakening of GI Total 591,915 tract function after abdominal surgery is generally thought to CC, complications and comorbidities occur in sequence: first, in the small intestine and the stomach, and postoperative malnutrition.18-23 In turn, the physiand, ultimately, in the colon. Failure of the postoperacal and psychological side effects of POI lead to protive patient to tolerate a diet, have flatus, and experilonged hospital length of stay (LOS) and increased ence a bowel movement within 5 days after laparotomy health care costs.24 In 1999, Prasad, using calculations or within 3 days after laparoscopic surgery, are indic14,15 Clinical presentation of published by Moss et al in 1986, estimated that the ecoative of a prolonged POI. POI is accompanied by abdominal distention, delayed nomic impact of ileus and its complications on the US or absent passage of gas, delayed or absent passage health care system would exceed $1 billion in 2000.16,25 In 2000, Woods hypothesized that effective manageof stool, decreased, or the absence of, bowel sounds, ment of POI—estimating that 750,000 patients could and accumulation of gas and fluid in the bowel with be discharged an average of 1 day earlier if effectively attendant nausea and/or vomiting.16,17 Nausea caused by ileus usually is described by patients as a very taxing managed—could result in a potential savings of $1.1 bilpostoperative complication. Another important clinical lion per year.26 More recent data from Goldstein et al suggest that annual costs attributed to managing POI manifestation of POI is recurrence of ileus, which can is approximately $1.5 billion.27 happen even after the patient is discharged from the hospital. Readmission occurs in approximately 10% of Coding for POI post-abdominal surgery patients, approximately half of There are numerous problems in defining ileus. Unlike whom are readmitted for GI failure or some measure of the vast majority of diseases, there are no objective criterecurrent, or perhaps incompletely resolved, POI.14 POI makes physical recovery more difficult, has a detrimenria by which ileus can be judged. There are no serologic, tal psychological effect on patients, and increases the concrete radiographic, or histopathologic examinapotential for wound infection, pulmonary complications, tions that can conclusively diagnose POI and none that d. 72 I N D E P E N D E N T LY D E V E L O P E D B Y M C M A H O N P U B L I S H I N G A ll can grade its severity or predict and risk stratify ileus. Because it is so elusive, it is even more difficult to measure any impact that therapy may have upon prevention or prompting the resolution of POI. Specifically, and again using the analogy of most other diseases, we can stratify patients by risk to allow prognostication, and, therefore, optimally assign therapeutic terms. We can then measure the impact of interventions using objective pre- and post-therapeutic scales. POI has no such definable criteria and, therefore, assessing the impact of any intervention on ileus is exceptionally difficult. No specific code exists for POI within the various coding systems (Diagnosis-Related Group, Clinical Classifications Software codes, and Major Diagnostic Categories MDC). The closest that one can come to labeling patients as having ileus is with the use of a combination of codes from the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD9-CM): • Code 997.4: Digestive system complications: Complications of intestinal (internal anastomosis and bypass not elsewhere classified, except that involving the urinary tract); • Code 560.1: Adynamic ileus; ileus (of intestine) (of bowel) (of colon); paralysis of intestine or colon; • Code 564.4: Other postoperative functional disorders (diarrhea following gastrointestinal surgery). ri py ts Co gh ri re gh se t rv © du ct i ib d. t e ro h no s p e i is n rw sio is he ot rm ss pe le ut un ho up wit ro G art ng n p i hi r is bl e o Pu ol h on w ah in cM on i ro M ep 09 .R 20 ed Prophylaxis of POI is certainly preferred to therapy. Every step of the preoperative, operative, and postoperative period should be directed toward decreasing the risk for developing POI. Kehlet summarized that the underlying rationale for multimodal rehabilitation is the simultaneous application of several interventions to improve overall postoperative morbidity.29 The process should commence with preoperative counseling. Counseling should include a thorough discussion with the patient and the patient’s family, if possible, about the importance of compliance with the postoperative regimen. Early ambulation and diet as tolerated should be emphasized. The surgeon may have the opportunity to perform the procedure in a laparoscopic manner, in which case POI may be less severe than after laparotomy. Surgical manipulation should be based on meticulous tissue handling, with minimal or no tissue trauma, and meticulous hemostasis. The following grades of evidence have been established for tissue handling: • Gentle handling and minimal manipulation of the intestines (grade 1C); • Mid-thoracic epidurals with local anesthetics for postoperative pain control (grade 2A); • Minimally invasive surgery instead of laparotomy (grade 2C); • Limiting the length of laparotomy incisions (grade 2C); and • Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) instead of opioids for analgesia (grade 2C).30 Regimens for Minimizing and Reducing POI “Fast-Track” Protocols Implementation of an enhanced recovery strategy for after surgery, or a “fast-track” protocol, has significantly reduced the incidence of POI.31-34 The protocol is a set of perioperative measures that includes both preoperative counseling (including the distribution and review of printed educational materials) and postoperative care pathways. The protocol calls for the absence of mechanical bowel preparation, standard general anesthesia without premedication, limited intraoperative fluid resuscitation, high concentrations of perioperative oxygen, use of epidural analgesia, standardized general anesthesia, minimal or transverse incisions, abandonment of routine use of NGTs, limited use of drains, enforced early postoperative mobilization, and opioid-sparing analgesia. Other measures include early nutrition and early bladder catheter removal.35,36 Every step of the fast-track protocol is evidence-based and oriented toward reducing surgeryrelated physical and psychological stressors.37 The Effects of Opioids and Fluid Management te Opioid drugs, the historical drugs of choice for postoperative analgesia, are known to have negative effects on various parts of GI system through presynaptic blockage of excitatory neurons, specific membrane receptors, and activation of μ2-receptors, leading to bowel dysfunction. Some known effects of opioids on the GI tract are listed in Table 2.38 d. Attempts have been made to describe a unified clinical scenario after major abdominal surgery by deriving pooled data from a homogenous placebo group of 3 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) designed to represent “typical” postoperative recovery after major abdominal colorectal surgery.28 The authors reviewed incidences of nausea, vomiting, nasogastric tube (NGT) insertion, upper and lower GI recovery, and hospital discharge, as well as readmission, in patients who underwent bowel resection by laparotomy with multimodal postoperative care designed to minimize POI. This regimen included early postoperative removal of the orogastric tube or NGT and the commencement of oral diet immediately after surgery with increased ambulation and diet on postoperative day 1 and an offer of solid food on postoperative day 2. The time to recovery of upper and lower GI functions were measured by either toleration of solid food or first bowel movement. Most of the patients in these studies managed to achieve at least one of these 2 criteria by postoperative day 4. However, 30% of patients still had not achieved GI recovery by day 6. Moreover, POI was a serious adverse event (AE) reported in 9.2% of patients. The majority of patients were discharged from the hospital by day 6; mean time until the hospital discharge order written was 6.1 days. However, 25% of patients were discharged from the hospital on or after postoperative day 7, and 12.2% of patients required insertion of postoperative NGT during their hospital stay. I N D E P E N D E N T LY D E V E L O P E D B Y M C M A H O N P U B L I S H I N G 73 Table 2. Effects of Opioids On the Gastrointestinal Tract Gallbladder • Contraction with biliary pain • Spasm in sphincter of Oddi, with delayed digestion and decreased secretion Gastroduodenum A ll • Inhibition of gastric emptying causing anorexia • Increased duodenal motility, followed by quiescence with resulting nausea and emesis • Increased pyloric tone • Enhanced gastric acid secretion ri py ts Co gh ri re gh se Small bowel t rv © du Colon ct • Increased tone/segmentation with constipation • Increased transit time, causing hard, dry stools • Increased absorption, inducing bloating and distension • Decreased secretion, producing spasm, cramps, and pain Anorectum • Decreased rectal sensitivity with feeling of incomplete evacuation • Increased internal sphincter tone, causing straining and constipation Based on reference 38. Laparoscopy has been shown to significantly decrease tissue trauma and postoperative pain, thereby decreasing both the local inflammatory component of ileus as well as the need for opioids with the attendant AEs of the opioids. Added benefits of the laparoscopic approach include improved pulmonary function, which lowers the risk for developing pneumonia, atelectasis, and other problems that predispose a patient to further bed rest.17 A Cochrane review of short-term benefits for laparoscopic colorectal resection that included 8 studies of 1,116 patients showed that flatus was achieved 1 day earlier with laparoscopy than with laparotomy (P<0.0001). Also, data collected from 9 trials that included 1,130 patients showed that patients who underwent laparoscopy reported their first bowel movement 0.9 days earlier than patients in the laparotomy group (P<0.0001).41 Traditionally, rectal surgery has been associated with a more prolonged ileus than colon surgery; however, with the adaptation of laparoscopic techniques along with the standard fast-track protocol, hospital LOS has been decreased to a mean of 3 days, with 90% of the patients discharged at or before postoperative day 5.42 The authors also reported a very respectable readmission rate of 8%, and noted that such impressive results would not have been possible without an educated and dedicated team working with patients from the time of scheduling the surgery to the time of discharge. With the combination of minimally invasive techniques and these clinical pathways, the instance of POI and small bowel obstruction after gynecologic operative laparoscopy was reduced to 0.036%.12 Multiple nonpharmacologic modalities such as acupuncture, electrical stimulation, mechanical massage, and psychological suggestion have been purported to help prevent or treat POI.17 Chinese medicine has a 6,000-year history that includes various modalities used for surgery. Although some authors speculate about the potential role of acupuncture and herbal enemas in the treatment of POI, very few data exist in English-language literature.43 All of these modalities require further investigation. One of the most recent trends in ileus treatment is sham feeding, in which patients are given chewing gum after surgery. The mechanism of action for reducing POI is unknown, although authors often cite the cephalic-vagal stimulation of digestion, bowel motility, hormonal secretion, and mechanical stimulation of the motility of the duodenum, stomach, and rectum, through the secretion of saliva, and pancreatic juices. d. I N D E P E N D E N T LY D E V E L O P E D B Y M C M A H O N P U B L I S H I N G Nonpharmacologic Modalities for POI te The use of postoperative opioid analgesics clearly exacerbates ileus. Accordingly, both IV patient-controlled analgesia and epidural opioid administration have been routinely used in an attempt to reduce dysmotility and POI inception and exacerbation.7 More recently, the use of NSAIDs, such as ketorolac and ibuprofen, has been recommended to reduce the use of opioids. Administration of NSAIDs in the early postoperative period not only produces opioid-steering effects, but it also directly affects prostaglandin synthesis and decreases inflammation. Wider application of thoracic epidural administration of local anesthetics combined with IV lidocaine has been reported to effectively mitigate the postoperative effects of colon surgery by reducing cytokine levels and pain, and facilitating bowel function.39 The management of excessive fluid during the early postoperative phase leads to sequestration of fluid in the intestinal wall, which can further hamper GI motility 74 Laparoscopy and POI i ib d. t e ro h no s p e i is n rw sio is he ot rm ss pe le ut un ho up wit ro G art ng n p i hi r is bl e o Pu ol h on w ah in cM on i ro M ep 09 .R 20 ed • Increased tone/segmentation with constipation • Increased transit time, resulting in delayed digestion • Increased absorption, causing hard, dry stool • Decreased secretion and thereby prolong POI and its numerous adverse sequelae.40 A meta-analysis performed by the Heidelberg group showed the benefits of restrictive rather than standard fluid replacement after colorectal resection by reducing postoperative morbidity.37 Sorbitol and other hexitols, the main ingredients in sugar-free chewing gums, are offered as hypothetical ileus ameliorating agents.44 Although a single prospective, randomized placebo-controlled trial questioned the effectiveness of chewing gum in postcolectomy ileus,45 several meta-analyses have shown that chewing gum does enhance bowel recovery without shortening of hospital stay.46-51 Pharmacologic Management of POI A ll To date there is no gold standard for the use of pharmacologic agents for treatment or prevention of ileus, although there are numerous reports of a variety of attempts.17 The Cochrane systematic review of 39 RCTs regarding systemic prokinetic pharmacologic treatment for POI after abdominal surgery in adults was published in 2008.52 The review included 4,615 patients who underwent major abdominal surgery, or major abdominal-vascular surgery, major abdominal urologic or gynecologic surgery. The review evaluated a variety of agents for anti-ileus activity, including the following: • cholinergic agonists (bethanechol, neostigmine) • benzamides (cisapride, metoclopramide, bromopride) • dopamine antagonists (domperidone) • peptide hormones (cholecystokinin, ceruletide, vasopressin) • adrenergic antagonists (propranolol) • macrolide antibiotic (erythromycin) • ergotamine derivates (dihydroergotamine) • systemic application of local anesthetics • prostaglandins • vitamins (pantothenic acid, dexpanthenol) • selective GI opioid antagonists ri py ts Co gh ri re gh se t rv © du ct Six RCTs from the Cochrane review support the effectiveness of alvimopan (Entereg, Adolor/GlaxoSmithKline), a novel peripheral µ-opioid receptor antagonist, for POI.52 METHYLNALTREXONE Erythromycin has shown homogenous and consistent absence of efficacy in numerous trials.52 Recent results obtained from a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study from the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine showed no significant difference between erythromycin IV infusion and placebo.55 Data from 11 patients in each group who underwent cystectomy with urinary diversion secondary to primary bladder cancer or interstitial cystitis found that erythromycin was not useful in improving POI as measured by the time to onset of bowel sounds, passage of flatus, passage of the first bowel movement, or toleration of a regular diet. CHOLECYSTOKININ-LIKE AGENTS The evidence in a Cochrane review was insufficient to recommend the use of cholecystokinin-like drugs, cisapride, dopamine antagonists, propranolol, or vasopressin. The effects of these medications were inconsistent across outcomes, the trials were quite small, and the methodology of the trials was sometimes suboptimal.52 Moreover, cisapride was withdrawn from the market in many countries in 2000 because of serious cardiac toxicity. However, the concept of preventing sympathetic inhibition by the prevention of the release of acetylcholine from excitatory fibers and myenteric plexus is very promising. In a recent study from Japan, mosapride, a serotonin 5-hydroxytryptan-4 receptor agonist without the effect on the dopamine D2 receptor or other receptors, was administered to patients who underwent hand-assisted laparoscopic colectomy.56 Patients in the mosapride group had a bowel movement 20.8 hours earlier (P=0.02) and a hospital LOS of 1.7 fewer days (P=0.04) compared with patients in the control group. The authors concluded that treatment with mosapride significantly improves postoperative GI motility and shortens POI in patients having a laparoscopic colectomy, with no AEs. i ib d. t e ro h no s p e i is n rw sio is he ot rm ss pe le ut un ho up wit ro G art ng n p i hi r is bl e o Pu ol h on w ah in cM on i ro M ep 09 .R 20 ed ALVIMOPAN ERYTHROMYCIN A Cochrane review has shown that systemic application of local anesthetics, such as IV lidocaine and neostigmine, might have a potential effect on POI, but more evidence on clinically relevant outcomes is needed. A research group from Liège, Belgium randomly assigned 40 laparoscopic colectomy patients into 2 groups—one group received perioperative 2% lidocaine as a bolus injection of 1.5 mg/kg lidocaine at the induction of anesthesia, followed by continuous infusion of 2 mg/kg per hour during surgery and 1.3 mg/kg per hour for the first 24 hours after surgery. The control group received placebo saline in coded 50-mL syringes.57 All patients in the study were enrolled in an acute rehabilitation program. The patients who received lidocaine showed statistically significant reduction in time to passage of first flatus compared with control group patients (17 vs 28 hours, te d. Methylnaltrexone (Relistor, Progenics Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Wyeth Pharmaceuticals) is also a peripherally acting µ-opioid antagonist. Although it is a quaternary derivative of the opioid antagonist naltrexone, it is unable to cross the blood–brain barrier, thus it maintains the centrally mediated analgesic effects of opioids. Methylnaltrexone is approved by the FDA in the subcutaneous injection form for the treatment of opioid-induced bowel dysfunction (constipation) in palliative care due to an advanced illness such as incurable cancer, end-stage heart and lung disease, and AIDS, as well as in methadone users and patients suffering from chronic pain.53,54 As of September 2009, its application in surgical patients in the United States was still under investigation. LOCAL ANESTHETICS I N D E P E N D E N T LY D E V E L O P E D B Y M C M A H O N P U B L I S H I N G 75 Table 3. Algorithm of Postoperative Rehabilitation At Cleveland Clinic Florida After Major Abdominal Surgery Postoperative Day 0 Activity Comments Oral/nasogastric tube removed at extubation Enforced early postoperative mobilization 5 laps in the hallway (approximately 100 m) A Clear liquid diet, ice chips ll 1 ri Incentive spirometry exercises Prevention of respiratory problems py ts 5,000 units every 8 h Co gh Subcutaneous heparin; deep vein thrombosis prophylaxis ri re Awaiting flatus or bowel movement gh se Removal of dressing t rv 2 © ed Removal of bladder catheter 20 .R M ro 3 09 ep If flatus or bowel movement has occurred, advance diet to full liquid diet ct Oral pain medication i ib d. t e ro h no s p e i is n rw sio is he ot rm ss pe le ut un ho up wit ro G art ng n p i hi r is bl e o Pu ol h on w ah in cM on i du Discontinue patient-controlled analgesia pump Advance diet to low-residue diet, unless distended 4 Anticipate discharge home Table 4. Definition of Diets At Cleveland Clinic Florida After Major Abdominal Surgery Diet Foods Allowed, Only: Clear liquid Broth, clear juices (apple, grape, cranberry), coffee, tea, soda, fruit ice, popsicle, sugar, salt Clear liquid, Give regular clear liquid American Diabetes Association (diabetic) Full liquid All items allowed on clear liquid diet, plus pudding, strained cream soups, oatmeal, cream of rice, ice cream, sherbet, milk Low residue Low fiber (avoid whole grains, fresh fruits, and vegetables) without any differences in either endocrine or metabolic profiles. The authors suggested that IV lidocaine infusion had an inhibitory effect of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors, which play a major role in postoperative hyperalgesia and polymorphonuclear leukocyte priming. A meta-analysis on the effects of lidocaine on POI was recently published in the British Journal of Surgery.58 The meta-analysis, which included 8 RCTs and 320 patients, concluded that the continuous IV administration of lidocaine during and after abdominal surgery improves patient rehabilitation and shortens hospital LOS. Cleveland Clinic Florida Practice te Our practice at Cleveland Clinic Florida includes a fast-track protocol (Table 3), a component of which is diet acceleration (Table 4). We do not employ epidural analgesia, but we do use patient-controlled analgesia. Patients are expected to ambulate commencing the day of surgery and attempt to ingest clear fluids on the day of surgery. The absence of progress at any step, or the development of nausea and/or vomiting, may lead to the acceleration of the protocol. Ultimately, the biggest challenge in treating POI may be distinguishing it from other postoperative intraabdominal problems, including an anastomotic leak, sepsis, fluid collection, electrolyte imbalance, pneumonia, or bowel obstruction.15 When any collection exists within the bowel, a water-soluble upper GI series with 76 I N D E P E N D E N T LY D E V E L O P E D B Y M C M A H O N P U B L I S H I N G d. respectively; P<0.001), time to first bowel movement (28 vs 51 hours, respectively; P=0.001), and had a shorter hospital LOS (2 vs 3 days; P=0.001). Patients who received lidocaine also required significantly less analgesia with opioids (8 vs 22 mg; P=0.005), had less postoperative pain, and experienced less fatigue, A ll small bowel follow through and/or a computed tomography scan with oral contrast might be useful in diagnosing, and potentially treating, obstruction. In these cases, Gastrografin (Bracco Diagnostics, Inc.) may be prokinetic.59-65 Gastrografin has an osmolarity of 1,900 mOsm/L, which is approximately 6 times that of extracellular fluid. It has been hypothesized that Gastrografin promotes shifting fluid into the bowel lumen, decreasing the pressure gradient across obstructive sites or bowel lumen. After the Gastrografin is diluted it may facilitate passage of contents within the intestinal track, with decreased bowel wall edema. Unlike barium, Gastrografin is relatively safe even if intestinal perforation and peritoneal spread occurs.63,66,67 ri py ts Co gh ri se gh re Conclusion t rv Despite significant advances in surgical and perioperative care, one of the most basic problems encountered in the postoperative period remains one of the most vexing. POI remains an Achilles’ heel of abdominal surgery. It has been ill-defined, has been difficult to characterize, and even harder to treat. Hopefully, some of the new pharmacologic modalities and fast-track protocols may help diminish this very troubling postoperative problem. © du ct 1. HCUP Nationwide Inpatient Sample. Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project; 2006. http://hcupnet.ahrq.gov. Accessed April 24, 2009. 2. Matthaiou DK, Peppas G, Falagas ME. Meta-analysis on Surgical Infections. Infect Dis Clin North Am. 2009;23(2):405-430. 3. Byrnes MC, Beilman GJ. Adjunctive measures for treating surgical infections and sepsis. Surg Clin North Am. 2009;89(2):349-363. 4. Nichols RL. Preventing surgical site infections: a surgeon’s perspective. Emerg Infect Dis. 2001;7(2):220-224. 5. Fleisher LA, Beckman JA, Brown KA, et al. ACC/AHA 2006 guideline update on perioperative cardiovascular evaluation for noncardiac surgery: focused update on perioperative betablocker therapy: a report of the American College of Cardiology/ American Heart Association Task Force on Practice Guidelines (Writing Committee to Update the 2002 Guidelines on Perioperative Cardiovascular Evaluation for Noncardiac Surgery) developed in collaboration with the American Society of Echocardiography, American Society of Nuclear Cardiology, Heart Rhythm Society, Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists, Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions, and Society for Vascular Medicine and Biology. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2006;47(11):2343-2355. 6. Kehlet H. Postoperative ileus—an update on preventive techniques. Nat Clin Pract Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2008;5(10):552-558. 7. Holte K, Kehlet H. Postoperative ileus: a preventable event. Br J Surg. 2000;87(11):1480-1493. 8. Artinyan A, Nunoo-Mensah JW, Balasubramaniam S, et al. 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