C-reactive protein level as a possible predictor for early postoperative ileus following elective surgery for colorectal cancer.

Background/aims: Inflammatory reactions are par- tially responsible for postoperative ileus (POI). Serum C-reactive protein (CRP) is an acknowledged marker of inflammation. In this study the CRP response with respect to POI in elective colorectal surgery was exam- ined to define the role of serum CRP as an early predic- tor of POI.

Methodology: Three hundred eighty-three patients who underwent elective colorectal resection were identified for inclusion in this study. We defined early POI as that occurring within 30 days following the surgery. Thirty-five patients with POI were com- pared to a subgroup of 348 patients with an unevent- ful postoperative course, and the correlation between postoperative serum CRP levels and POI in colorectal surgery was investigated.

Results: In the univariate analysis, length of operation, surgical blood loss, and serum CRP were factors significantly associated with POI following colorectal surgery; however, these fac- tors lost their significance on multivariate analysis.

Conclusion: Our results suggest that an increase in CRP levels alone is not a predictor for POI following surgery for colorectal surgery. Although inflammatory responses are known to contribute to the ileus, ad- ditional study is required to identify risk factors that would be more useful for prediction of POI.