Prospective Randomized Trial of Immediate Postoperative Use of Regular Diet Versus Clear Liquid Diet in Major Colorectal Surgery

BACKGROUND

Enhanced recovery protocols are becoming standard practice after major colorectal surgery. An increasing body of evidence suggests that early feeding should be encouraged; however, whether a clear liquid diet or solid diet should be given immediately after surgery is undetermined.

OBJECTIVE

Evaluate whether regular diet was superior to clear liquid diet beginning on postoperative day 0 after major colorectal surgery.

DESIGN

Superiority trial design.

SETTING

Urban tertiary center.

PATIENTS

Consecutive patients undergoing abdominal colorectal surgery from September 2017 to June 2018.

INTERVENTIONS

Eligible patients received either 1) clear liquid diet on postoperative day 0 with advancement to regular diet on postoperative day 1 or 2) regular diet on postoperative day 0 and continuing for the duration of patients' recovery.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

The primary end point was diet tolerance, defined by the absence of vomiting by postoperative day 2.

RESULTS

A total of 105 patients were randomly assigned with 53 in the clear liquid diet group and 52 in the regular diet group. All randomly assigned patients were included in the analysis. The rate of diet tolerance by postoperative day 2 was similar between groups. Rates of ileus, antiemetic usage, narcotic usage, time to return of bowel function, and pain/nausea/bloating scores were similar between the 2 groups. Significantly more patients in the clear liquid diet group (91%) tolerated their diet than did the regular diet group (71%) on postoperative day 0 ( p = 0.01).

LIMITATIONS

Diet tolerance was only monitored during inpatient stay. The rate of postoperative ileus was difficult to capture as its clinical definition encompassed a wide range of symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS

Regular diet immediately after abdominal colorectal surgery was not superior to a clear liquid diet with respect to diet tolerance by postoperative day 2. Furthermore, starting regular diet on postoperative day 0 was not associated with any outcome benefits compared to clear liquid diet.

ENSAYO PROSPECTIVO ALEATORIZADO SOBRE EL USO POSTOPERATORIO INMEDIATO DE UNA DIETA NORMAL VERSUS UNA DIETA DE LQUIDOS CLAROS EN CIRUGAS MAYORES COLORRECTALES

ANTECEDENTES:Los protocolos de recuperación mejorada se están convirtiendo en una práctica estandarizada tras una cirugía mayor colorrectal. La creciente evidencia sugiere la alimentación temprana debe ser estimulada, sin embargo, no se ha determinado si se debe administrar una dieta de líquidos claros o una dieta sólida inmediatamente después de la cirugía.OBJETIVO:Evaluar si la dieta regular fue superior a la dieta de líquidos claros a partir del día cero del postoperatorio tras una cirugía mayor colorrectal.DISEÑO:Diseño de prueba de superioridad.AJUSTE:Centro terciario urbano.PACIENTES:Pacientes consecutivos sometidos a cirugía abdominal colorrectal desde septiembre de 2017 hasta junio de 2018INTERVENCIONES:Los pacientes elegibles recibieron ya sea 1) dieta de líquidos claros en el día 0 del postoperatorio con avance a la dieta regular en el día 1 del postoperatorio o 2) dieta regular en el día 0 del postoperatorio y continuaron durante la recuperación de los pacientes.PRINCIPALES MEDIDAS DE RESULTADO:El criterio principal de valoración fue la tolerancia a la dieta, definida por la ausencia de vómitos en el segundo día posoperatorio.RESULTADOS:Un total de 105 pacientes fueron aleatorizados con 53 en el grupo de dieta de líquidos claros y 52 en el grupo de dieta regular. Todos los pacientes aleatorizados fueron incluidos en el análisis. La tasa de tolerancia a la dieta en el segundo día postoperatorio fue similar entre los grupos. Las tasas de íleo, del uso de antieméticos, del uso de narcóticos, del tiempo de recuperación de la función intestinal y puntajes de dolor/náuseas/distensión abdominal fueron similares entre los dos grupos. Significativamente más pacientes en el grupo de dieta de líquidos claros (91%) toleraron su dieta comparada al grupo de dieta regular (71%) en el día postoperatorio 0 ( p = 0,01).LIMITACIONES:La tolerancia a la dieta solo fue monitorizada durante la estadía hospitalaria. La tasa de íleo postoperatorio fue difícil de registrar debido a que su definición clínica abarcaba una amplia variedad de síntomas.CONCLUSIONES:La dieta regular inmediatamente después de la cirugía abdominal colorrectal no fue superior a una dieta de líquidos claros con respecto a la tolerancia de la dieta en el día 2 del postoperatorio. Además, comenzar una dieta regular el día cero del postoperatorio no se asoció con ningún beneficio en los resultados en comparación con la dieta de líquidos claros. (Traducción-Dr. Osvaldo Gauto ).

Unanticipated 30-day readmission following rectosigmoid resection at the time of cytoreductive surgery in patients with advanced stage ovarian cancer

The objective of this study was to examine the rate of and indications for readmission in patients with advanced staged ovarian cancer undergoing rectosigmoid resection and primary anastomosis, an important quality metric. A retrospective review was conducted of patients with primary ovarian cancer who underwent rectosigmoid resection as part of cytoreductive surgery between July 2003 and July 2014. Univariate analysis identified rates and predictors of readmission. Fifty patients were eligible for analysis. The unanticipated 30-day readmission rate was 18% (n = 9). Of those readmitted less than 30 days from date of discharge, 3 were readmitted more than once, making 14 total readmissions. A total of 21 indications for readmission were reported, with the most common being: infection (23.8%, n = 5); thromboembolic events (19%, n = 4); and severe malnutrition (14.3%, n = 3). The median time to readmission was 14 days (range, 2-26). There were no deaths within 30 days of surgery in this cohort.IMPACT STATEMENTWhat is already known about the subject? Unanticipated 30-day readmission rates are reported to be between 12 and 20% among patients undergoing cytoreductive surgery for the management of ovarian cancer. The relative contribution of rectosigmoid resection at the time of cytoreductive surgery to readmission is not well studied.What do the results of this study add? In the examined cohort, the unanticipated 30-day readmission rate following rectosigmoid resection with primary reanastomosis at the time of cytoreductive surgery is 18%, similar to the readmission rate for patients undergoing cytoreductive surgery, in general. While the sample size is limited, the perioperative complications in this cohort appear similar to those of patients undergoing cytoreductive surgery.What are the implications of these findings for clinical practice and/or further research? Efforts to reduce unanticipated 30-day readmission following cytoreductive surgery is warranted. Future studies may benefit from multi-centre approaches and prospective data collection, while simultaneously assessing the impact of enhanced recovery programs. Ultimately, identification of risk factors, and programmatic initiatives to drive down readmission will be important across surgical platforms, and the opportunity exists in patients with advanced stage ovarian cancer.