english.prescrire.org > Spotlight > Archives : 2010 > Resumption of bowel movements after abdominal surgery is speeded up by chewing-gum

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Resumption of bowel movements after abdominal surgery is speeded up by chewing-gum

Chewing gum seems to be a simple way to speed up the resumption of bowel movements after abdominal surgery, and can even shorten a patient’s stay in hospital, with no major adverse effects.

After abdominal surgery, it is usual for bowel movements to stop and there is no known effective treatment to assist their resumption. The stoppage of bowel movements is considered abnormal when it lasts more than 3 days.

A review of 9 clinical trials assessed the effect of chewing sugar-free gum on the resumption of bowel movements in patients having undergone intestinal surgery.

Resumption occurred about 14 hours earlier in people who had chewed gum, and the duration of their stay in hospital was shortened by about one day.

Another trial conducted on women who had had a caesarean section under general anaesthetic showed a reduction of about 6 hours in the time taken for bowel movements to resume.

There were no severe adverse effects.

It seems advisable to encourage postoperative patients to chew gum to speed up the resumption of bowel movements and to shorten their hospital stay.

©Prescrire December 2010

Source : "Chewing-gum et reprise du transit intestinal postopératoire" Rev Prescrire 2010; 30 (323): p 690-691" Rev Prescrire 2010; 30 (323): 690-691.