The incidence and risk of early postoperative small bowel obstruction after laparoscopic resection for colorectal cancer.

Abstract

Early postoperative small bowel obstruction is associated with considerable morbidity and mortality but has not been well documented in the era of laparoscopic surgery for colorectal cancer. Consecutive patients who had undergone laparoscopic resection for colorectal cancer were studied. In total, 1787 patients (105 with and 1682 without early postoperative small bowel obstruction) with colorectal cancer requiring laparoscopic colorectal surgery were evaluated in this study. Ten patients (0.56% among the total patient population, 9.5% among patients who experienced early postoperative small bowel obstruction) who did not respond to conservative treatment for more than 14 days required surgical intervention. Multivariate analysis showed that male sex (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]=2.27), combined operation (AOR=2.23), and diverting stoma (AOR=4.79) were associated with a higher early postoperative small bowel obstruction rate. For factors related to surgical difficulty, open conversion (AOR=2.85), blood transfusion (AOR=3.51), and an operation time longer than 180 minutes (AOR=1.91) were independent factors associated with an increased early postoperative small bowel obstruction rate. Early postoperative small bowel obstruction following laparoscopic resection for colorectal cancer occurred in 5.9% of patients. Factors for predicting the development of early postoperative small bowel obstruction in patients with colorectal cancer are variables reflective of a more difficult surgery, rather than pathologic disease severity or anatomical location. In addition, most patients with early postoperative small bowel obstruction improved with conservative treatment, and surgical treatment was rarely needed.