Limited preoperative physical capacity continues to be associated with poor postoperative outcomes within a colorectal ERAS programme.

E McLennan, R Oliphant, S J Moug

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Article in Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

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6citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it

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1 · What the graph read from it

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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

Integrating multimodal prehabilitation into enhanced recovery after surgery programs (MPhERAS) for elderly patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials and cohort studies.Techniques in coloproctology · 2025
Pooled it
Acceptability of the RecoverEsupport Digital Health Intervention Among Patients Undergoing Breast Cancer Surgery: Qualitative Study.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025
Article
The Latest Results and Future Directions of Research for Enhanced Recovery after Surgery in the Field of Colorectal Surgery.Ewha medical journal · 2023
Review
Association of Prehabilitation With Postoperative Opioid Use in Colorectal Surgery: An Observational Cohort Study.The Journal of surgical research · 2022
Observational
Blood metabolomic profiling predicts postoperative gastrointestinal function of colorectal surgical patients under the guidance of goal-directed fluid therapy.Aging · 2021
Article
Comparison of Footsteps Using Connected Bracelets with the Timed Up-and-Go Test and the 6-Minutes Walking Test in a Prospective Colorectal Surgery Cohort.Nutrients · 2020
Observational

4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

E McLennanDepartment of Surgery, Royal Alexandra Hospital , Paisley , UK.

R OliphantDepartment of Surgery, Raigmore Hospital , Inverness , UK.

S J MougDepartment of Surgery, Royal Alexandra Hospital , Paisley , UK.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

aimEnhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) programmes aim to standardise perioperative care leading to optimal patient outcomes. Despite these programmes, variation in outcomes still persists. This study aimed to assess the influence of lifestyle factors on short-term outcomes after colorectal surgery within this optimal recovery programme.

methodsConsecutive patients enrolled on an ERAS pathway who underwent elective colorectal surgery (June 2013 to July 2014) at one site were included. We used data routinely collected by ERAS nurse specialists and during preassessment to analyse association between patient and lifestyle factors and likelihood of developing postoperative complications or having an increased length of stay.

resultsA total of 199 patients were included: mean age 61.8 years (range 17-90 years) and 53.8% male. Age, sex, deprivation, smoking status, alcohol intake, body mass index or level of comorbidity were not associated with postoperative complications. Patients reporting limited preoperative physical capacity (unable to climb two flights of stairs) were more than four times as likely to have a postoperative complication on univariate analysis and were found to still have increased risk of postoperative complications on multivariate analysis. Patients reporting limited preoperative physical capacity were shown to have significantly longer hospital stay on univariate analysis. In the multivariate analysis, limited physical capacity was not associated with prolonged length of stay due to confounding factors of age and deprivation.

conclusionsLimited physical capacity was the only patient and lifestyle factor associated with poorer postoperative complications and prolonged hospital stay after elective colorectal surgery within an ERAS programme. Consideration should be given to individualised prehabilitation that aims to increase physical capacity pre-operatively to improve patient outcomes.

Indexed as

Physical FitnessAdolescentAdultAgedAged, 80 and overColonFemaleHumansLaparoscopyLength of StayLife StyleLogistic ModelsMaleMiddle AgedPerioperative CarePostoperative ComplicationsColorectal surgeryGeneral surgeryLifestyleOutcomes

Identifiers

PMID30644323

DOI10.1308/rcsann.2018.0213

PMCPMC6432952

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.