Abstract
Background: Preoperative mechanical bowel preparation (MBP) for elective colorectal surgery has been criticized, but is still in use because of fear of fecal load and peritoneal contamination. Experience with an indigenous low cost technique for on-table colonic lavage (OTCL) in obstructive left-sided colonic pathology has been described. OTCL would be a step towards discouraging MBP before colorectal surgery. Patients and Methods: Fourteen patients for elective colorectal surgery without preoperative bowel preparation were evaluated and found with impacted fecal matter and loaded colon intraoperatively. Instead of two-stage procedure, we did OTCL by our own devised method followed by a single-stage curative resection. Results: All patients had successful resection and primary anastomosis of their lesions. Mean time for lavage was 21 min. There was no peritoneal contamination. No postoperative anesthesia or procedure-related complication was encountered. No clinical anastomotic leak or mortality was encountered. In one patient, surgical site wound infection occurred. Conclusion: In cases where bowel preparation is not done preoperatively and single-stage procedure discredited only because of impacted fecal matter, OTCL should be taken into account. Our technique of OTCL should be employed as it is simple, safe, and cheap and would prove to be a step towards discouraging preoperative MBP for elective colorectal surgery, especially in resource limited setting.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.