[Research advance in causes of postoperative gastrointestinal dysfunction]

Gastrointestinal dysfunction is a common and major complication after surgery. The syndrome covers a wide spectrum of clinical signs, ranges from mild feeling to severe discomfort and varies from person to person. The mild patients need no care, but severe ones may have long hospital stay, and even suffer from multiple organ dysfunction syndrome, severely affecting postoperative rehabilitation. However, the etiology of postoperative gastrointestinal dysfunction has not been fully elucidated. Much research demonstrates that many factors, such as operative procedures, surgical operation, homeostasis disturbance, anesthesia and analgesia, blood perfusion, inflammation, and neuroendocrine factors, are responsible for the development and progression of postoperative gastrointestinal dysfunction. This study therefore reviewed the causes of postoperative gastrointestinal dysfunction in the published literatures.