Feeding the gut early after digestive surgery: results of a nine-year experience

Early enteral nutrition (EEN) after surgery should be preferred to parenteral feeding, but its clinical use is limited for concerns about possible gastrointestinal (GI) adverse effects and feeding tube-related complications. Thus we evaluated our experience focusing on safety and tolerance of early postoperative jejunal feeding and possible risk factors for gastrointestinal adverse effects.

650 subjects treated with EEN after major digestive surgery for cancer were prospectively studied. EEN was started within 12 hours after operation via a naso-jejunal (NJ) feeding tube or a catheter-feeding jejunostomy. The rate of infusion was progressively increased to reach the nutritional goal (25 kcal/kg/day) within the 4th postoperative day. Rigorous treatment protocols for diet delivery and EEN-related GI adverse effects were applied.

402 patients had a jejunostomy and 248 patients a NJ tube. EEN-related GI adverse effects were observed in 194/650 patients (29.8%). In 136/194 patients, these events were successfully handled by treatment protocols. Overall the nutritional goal was achieved in 592/650 patients (91.1%). Fifty-eight (8.9%) subjects had to be switched to parenteral feeding because of refractory intolerance to EEN. Intra-abdominal surgical complications and low serum albumin (<30 g/L) were the two major factors affecting tolerance. Severe jejunostomy-related complications occurred in 7/402 (1.7%) patients. EEN-related mortality was 0.1% (1/650).

The use of the gut early after surgery is safe and well-tolerated and it should represent the first choice for nutritional support in this type of patients.