Gastrointestinal motility after pancreatoduodenectomy

Pancreatoduodenectomy (PD) is a major surgical procedure which is accompanied by a high morbidity of between 30 and 50%. A large part of this morbidity is caused by delayed gastric emptying (DGE), which is reported to have an incidence of between 30 and 40% and is associated with prolonged hospital stay. Several pathophysiological mechanisms are thought to cause this complication. Peroperative trauma of the pylorus and the occurrence of intra-abdominal abscesses play a role. Neuronal changes and disruption of the gastrointestinal (GI) intramural nervous plexus may be especially important regarding the pivotal role of the duodenum in the initiation and coordination of antroduodenal motor activity. Another important factor is the postoperative administration of enteral nutrition. Recently, it was demonstrated that cyclic enteral nutrition through a catheter jejunostomy led to a faster return to normal diet and shorter hospital stay than patients on continuous enteral nutrition; this might be partly caused by continuously elevated cholecystokinin levels. The effect of prokinetic agents has not been studied extensively, but a beneficial action on the return of postoperative gastric function after gastrointestinal surgery seems limited.