Mechanical bowel preparation for elective colorectal surgery

BACKGROUND: The presence of bowel contents during colorectal surgery has been related to anastomotic leakage, but the belief that mechanical bowel preparation (MBP) is an efficient agent against leakage and infectious complications is based on observational data and expert opinions only.An enema before the rectal surgery to clean the rectum and facilitate the manipulation for the mechanical anastomosis is used for many surgeons. This is analysed separately OBJECTIVES: To determine the security and effectiveness of MBP on morbidity and mortality in colorectal surgery. SEARCH STRATEGY: Publications describing trials of MBP before elective colorectal surgery were sought through searches of MEDLINE, EMBASE,…