[Current status and prospect of enhanced recovery after surgery]

Since the concept of fast track surgery (also known as enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS)) was first introduced by Professor Kehlet in 1997, it has been 18 years of clinical practice. Significant progressions have been made in different fields of surgery, generally, in reducing the surgical stress, reducing the postoperative complications, and shortening the length of hospital stay. It has also been over ten years since the first research of ERAS in China. However, there are still some difficulties and obstacles in clinical applications, especially from the traditional habit. Thus, future studies of surgical stress and the regularity of metabolism are needed. The existing evidence of researches on ERAS should be translated into clinical application. Therefore, the aim of free-pain and no risk surgery will be achieved.