Postoperative Nutritional Management for Gastrointestinal Emergency Diseases

Abstract

Many patients with emergency gastrointestinal diseases require emergency operations and are intolerant of enteral nutrition thereafter. We evaluated nutritional management after emergency operations in patients with emergency gastrointestinal diseases. We retrospectively studied the postoperative fasting period, intensive care unit (ICU) admission, and quantity of nutrients consumed as of postoperative day 7 in 550 abdominal emergency patients. Sixty-seven patients were managed using total parenteral nutrition for more than seven postoperative days, including 25 patients who were treated in the ICU. There were no significant differences in the mortality rate or the length of the hospital stay whether treated in the ICU or not. The fasting period was 8 days in both groups, and the quantity of nutrients administered on postoperative day 7 was below 500 kcal in both groups. Many patients with emergency gastrointestinal diseases require intensive care after presenting with peritonitis and sepsis. Permissive underfeeding is better than full feeding only during the early postoperative period. In conclusion, the route and quantity of nutrients to be administered should be carefully decided because inappropriate nutritional support can adversely affect a patient's nutritional status.