Gastrointestinal Complications Following Heart Surgery: An Updated Review

Background and Aims: To focus through a related literature research and the authors’ personal experience on the issue of gastrointestinal complications after heart surgery.Methods: We included in our review article selected studies dealing with the issue of gastrointestinal complications after heart surgery.Results: All related studies concluded to a relative small incidence for gastrointestinal complicationsafter heart surgery of about 0.5 to 1.0%. [1]. However, the overall mortality was estimated to be disproportionally high, making the impact of these postoperative pathologies a significant one.Conclusions: Gastrointestinal complications consist a quite rare and often difficult to diagnose category of complications after heart surgery, which despite their small incidence, influence the overall mortality rate of cardiac operations. Time-sparing, meticulous performance of the operations and early diagnosis are the best measures against these complications.