Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2009 Apr;52(2):153-7.

Pharmacological management of postoperative ileus

Affiliations
Review

Pharmacological management of postoperative ileus

Farhad Zeinali et al. Can J Surg. 2009 Apr.

Abstract

The duration of postoperative ileus following abdominal surgery is quite variable, and prolonged postoperative ileus is an iatrogenic phenomenon with important influence on patient morbidity, hospital costs and length of stay in hospital. Adequate treatment for prolonged postoperative ileus is important to improve patient morbidity and clinical efficiency. Both clinical and pharmacological management strategies have improved rapidly over the last decade, and appropriate and timely management using multimodal techniques should be used for optimal care. In this review, we define postoperative ileus, describe the pathogenesis and briefly discuss clinical management before detailing potential pharmacologic management options.

La durée de l'iléus postopératoire consécutif à une chirurgie abdominale est assez variable, et l'iléus postopératoire prolongé est un phénomène iatrogène susceptible d'exercer un impact important sur la morbidité, de même que sur les coûts et la durée du séjour hospitalier. Il est important de traiter adéquatement l'iléus postopératoire prolongé afin de réduire la morbidité et d'améliorer l'efficacité clinique. Les stratégies de prise en charge, tant cliniques que pharmacologiques, se sont rapidement améliorées depuis une dizaine d'années; une prise en charge appropriée et précoce faisant appel à des techniques multimodales s'impose pour la prestation de soins optimaux. Dans la présente synthèse, nous définissons l'iléus postopératoire et nous en décrivons brièvement la pathogenèse et le traitement, avant d'aborder plus en détail les options pharmacothérapeutiques possibles.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Delaney C, Kehlet H, Senagore A, et al. Postoperative ileus: profiles, risk factors, and definitions—a framework for optimizing surgical outcomes in patients undergoing major abdominal colorectal surgery. In: Bosker G, editor. Clinical consensus update in general surgery. Roswell (GA): Pharmatecture, LLC); 2006. Available: www.clinicalwebcasts.com/pdfs/GenSurg_WEB.pdf (accessed 2008 May 15).
    1. Holte K, Kehlet H. Postoperative ileus: a preventable event. Br J Surg 2000;87:1480-93. - PubMed
    1. Delaney CP, Zutshi M, Senagore AJ, et al. Prospective randomized controlled trial between a pathway of Controlled Rehabilitation with Early Ambulation and Diet (CREAD) and traditional postoperative care after laparotomy and intestinal resection. Dis Colon Rectum 2003;46:851-9. - PubMed
    1. Mattei P, Romgeau JL. Review of the pathophysiology and management of postoperative ileus. World J Surg 2006;30:1382-91. - PubMed
    1. Delaney CP. Clinical perspective on postoperative ileus and the effect of opiates. Neurogastroenterol Motil 2004;16(Suppl 2):1-4. - PubMed

MeSH terms