Early oral feeding is the preferred mode of nutrition for surgical patients. Avoidance of any nutritional therapy bears the risk of underfeeding during the postoperative course after major surgery. Considering that malnutrition and underfeeding are risk factors for postoperative complications, early enteral feeding is especially relevant for any surgical patient at nutritional risk, especially for those undergoing upper gastrointestinal surgery. The focus of this guideline is to cover nutritional aspects of the Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) concept and the special nutritional needs of patients undergoing major surgery, e.g. for cancer, and of those developing severe complications despite best perioperative care. From a metabolic and nutritional point of view, the key aspects of perioperative care include: • integration of nutrition into the overall management of the patient • avoidance of long periods of preoperative fasting • re-establishment of oral feeding as early as possible after surgery • start of nutritional therapy early, as soon as a nutritional risk becomes apparent • metabolic control e.g. of blood glucose • reduction of factors which exacerbate stress-related catabolism or impair gastrointestinal function • minimized time on paralytic agents for ventilator management in the postoperative period • early mobilisation to facilitate protein synthesis and muscle function The guideline presents 37 recommendations for clinical practice.

Background: Transanal dissection of the rectum has been recently introduced for ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (IPAA) in UC showing promising results. Thanks to the precise identification of the rectotomy site the risk of long rectal stump is avoided, and a single stapled anastomosis is performed easily. The aim of this study is to analyze our initial experience of transanal IPAA (Ta-IPAA), considering postoperative complications and medium-term functional outcomes. Methods: Our Center has experienced the transanal approach for proctectomy and IPAA since October 2018. All patients underwent Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) protocol. Postoperative complications occurring within 30 days after surgery were taken into consideration. Results: Until March 2019, 8 patients underwent Ta-IPAA. In all cases the laparoscopic approach was performed during the transabdominal phase; abdominal drainage was never used. At the time of the pouch construction a defunctioning ileostomy was created in all patients. Stoma closure was performed in all cases at a median time of 6 months after surgery. Postoperative complications occurred in only one patient, who showed rectal bleeding. There were no cases of anastomotic leakage. Medium-term functional outcomes were determined prospectively by a validated questionnaire (Cleveland Global Quality of Life). Fecal incontinence for liquid or solid stool, restriction in work and social genitourinary and sexual functions were also investigated. Conclusions: In our experience, Ta-IPAA provided good short and medium-term functional results in UC. Background Restorative proctocolectomy is widely adopted in the treatment of ulcerative colitis ,, , as well as in other inflammatory and neoplastic conditions, requiring an ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (IPAA) to reconstruct gastrointestinal continuity to the anus. Conventionally, either the laparoscopic or the open approach can be employed to gain rectal dissection and creation of ileal pouch-anal anastomosis. Pouch-anal anastomosis is usually made using a stapler, leaving a 2 cm rectal cuff in order to preserve continence and to reduce the risk of inflammatory recurrence or dysplasia. The dissection of the last centimeters of the rectum, rectum resection and ileal pouch-anal anastomosis could be demanding from a technical point of view due to narrow pelvic space and cross stapling of the distal part of the rectum is often challenging for surgeons. Transanal total mesorectal excision (TaTME) has been recently described in rectal cancer treatment, with potential technical and oncologic advantages compared to transabdominal approach. The transanal approach for the proctectomy has been described also in IPAA since 2015, showing feasibility and potential technical advantages; some series ,,, and initial comparative studies have been published , , showing a not increased rate of postoperative morbidity, equivalent quality of life and functional results. The aim of our study is to analyze a single centre experience of transanal IPAA (Ta-IPAA), examining e...

Background This review aims to present a consensus for optimal perioperative care in rectal/pelvic surgery, and to provide graded recommendations for items for an evidenced-based enhanced recovery protocol. Methods Studies were selected with particular attention paid to meta-analyses, randomized controlled trials and large prospective cohorts. For each item of the perioperative treatment pathway, available English-language literature was examined, reviewed and graded. A consensus recommendation was reached after critical appraisal of the literature by the group. Results For most of the protocol items, recommendations are based on good-quality trials or meta-analyses of goodquality trials (evidence grade: high or moderate).

Urinary retention is common after anesthesia and surgery, reported incidence of between 5% and 70%. Comorbidities, type of surgery, and type of anesthesia influence the development of postoperative urinary retention (POUR). The authors review the overall incidence and mechanisms of POUR associated with surgery, anesthesia and analgesia. Ultrasound has been shown to provide an accurate assessment of urinary bladder volume and a guide to the management of POUR. Recommendations for urinary catheterization in the perioperative setting vary widely, influenced by many factors, including surgical factors, type of anesthesia, comorbidities, local policies, and personal preferences. Inappropriate management of POUR may be responsible for bladder overdistension, urinary tract infection, and catheter-related complications. An evidence-based approach to prevention and management of POUR during the perioperative period is proposed.

Perioperative malnutrition has proven to be challenging to define, diagnose, and treat. Despite these challenges, it is well known that suboptimal nutritional status is a strong independent predictor of poor postoperative outcomes. Although perioperative caregivers consistently express recognition of the importance of nutrition screening and optimization in the perioperative period, implementation of evidence-based perioperative nutrition guidelines and pathways in the United States has been quite limited and needs to be addressed in surgery-focused recommendations. The second Perioperative Quality Initiative brought together a group of international experts with the objective of providing consensus recommendations on this important topic with the goal of (1) developing guidelines for screening of nutritional status to identify patients at risk for adverse outcomes due to malnutrition; (2) address optimal methods of providing nutritional support and optimizing nutrition status preoperatively; and (3) identifying when and how to optimize nutrition delivery in the postoperative period. Discussion led to strong recommendations for implementation of routine preoperative nutrition screening to identify patients in need of preoperative nutrition optimization. Postoperatively, nutrition delivery should be restarted immediately after surgery. The key role of oral nutrition supplements, enteral nutrition, and parenteral nutrition (implemented in that order) in most perioperative patients was advocated for with protein delivery being more important than total calorie delivery. Finally, the role of often-inadequate nutrition intake in the posthospital setting was discussed, and the role of postdischarge oral nutrition supplements was emphasized.

Based on the evidence available for each item of the multimodal perioperative care pathway, the Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) Society, European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism (ESPEN) and International Association for Surgical Metabolism and Nutrition (IASMEN) present a comprehensive evidence-based consensus review of perioperative care for rectal surgery.

BackgroundThe present article has been written to convey concepts of anaesthetic care within the context of an Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) programme, thus aligning the practice of anaesthesia with the care delivered by the surgical team before, during and after surgery.MethodsThe physiological principles supporting the implementation of the ERAS programmes in patients undergoing major abdominal procedures are reviewed using an updated literature search and discussed by a multidisciplinary group composed of anaesthesiologists and surgeons with the aim to improve perioperative care.ResultsThe pathophysiology of some key perioperative elements disturbing the homoeostatic mechanisms such as insulin resistance, ileus and pain is here discussed.ConclusionsEvidence‐based strategies aimed at controlling the disruption of homoeostasis need to be evaluated in the context of ERAS programmes. Anaesthesiologists could, therefore, play a crucial role in facilitating the recovery process.

The decisions of the anesthesiologist as a key perioperative physician are of critical importance to the surgical care team in developing a successful fast-track surgery program.