Delayed gastric emptying following gastrectomy.

The characteristics of 46 patients unable to take a solid diet within two weeks of gastric resection and had no other post-operative complications are reviewed. The incidence of delayed gastric emptying was found to be 2 1/2 times greater in patients with vagotomy and hemigastrectomy than in those with subtotal gastrectomy. In addition, postoperative delay was often prolonged in the hemigastrectomy and vagotomy group. Mechanical factors were responsible for delay in only 10% of these patients. Possible explanations for these delays are made and it is suggested that localized starch peritonitis may explain many cases of "functional efferent limb ileus." Measures to evaluate the source of delay are recommended and suggest conservative management for the majority of patients. Reoperation is reserved for those who require feeding or draining enterostomy tubes and those whose clinical course and evaluation suggest obstruction.