[Postoperative ileus. Measurement of the changes in intragastric pressure immediately after abdominal operations...

During the post-operative period, there is no intestinal paralysis, but simply a transient disorder of motility, the duration and intensity of which are different in the stomach, small intestine and colon. The asynchronism between regularisation of motor activity of the small intestine, which is almost immediate, and that of the colon, which occurs later, is responsible for the clinical picture usually noted. In the light of these new findings, the author analyses the various factors liable to modify the course of post-operative and attempts to suggest appropriate management of the immediate post-operative period.