COMPLICATIONS OF COLON SURGERY_REVIEW ARTICLE

Colon surgery represents a high number of patients treated at a department of gastrointestinal surgery and is not limited to colon cancer. It includes other non-neoplastic pathologies such as inflammatory bowel disease, diverticular disease or colonic volvulus. As with any major procedure, colon surgery patients may present serious or even fatal complications. The incidence of postoperative complications from colon surgery has been estimated at between 10% and 30% according to selected series. Preventive measures against surgical complications include selection of an appropriate procedure for the patient as well as good preoperative care, appropriate surgical technique and good postoperative management. When diagnosis has been established, risks for patient should be assessed according to patient’s health conditions and type of surgery accomplished. When the patient meets the surgical requirements, an appropriate course of preoperative care should be carried out including colon wash  antibiotics and antithrombotic prophylaxis. Postoperative period will be equivalent to any major abdominal surgery. Typically, it was considered appropriate to wait a few days before initiating feeding in order to protect anastomosis; however, some authors agree that an early oral diet hours after intervention is not associated with a higher risk of anastomotic dehiscence and other complications.