Enhanced Recovery Protocols in Surgical Care
Summary
Enhanced Recovery Protocols in surgical care represent a systematic, evidence-based approach to perioperative management designed to reduce physiological stress, expedite functional recovery and shorten hospitalisation. By integrating preoperative optimisation, minimally invasive surgical techniques and multimodal perioperative care pathways, these programmes address each phase of surgery—from prehabilitation and patient education through intraoperative fluid and analgesic management to early postoperative mobilisation and nutrition. Key elements include tailored analgesia to minimise opioid use, goal-directed fluid therapy to maintain optimal haemodynamic status, early enteral feeding and standardised criteria for discharge. Collectively, these protocols have demonstrated reductions in postoperative complications, improvements in patient-reported outcomes and significant cost savings across a range of surgical specialties. Ongoing efforts focus on personalising protocols through digital health tools, enhancing adherence through interdisciplinary collaboration and expanding applications in high-risk and emergency settings worldwide.
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Enhanced Recovery Protocols in Surgical Care publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in enhanced recovery protocols in surgical care across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS): A multimodal, evidence-based set of perioperative interventions aimed at reducing surgical stress and accelerating postoperative recovery.
Multimodal care pathway: A coordinated approach that combines various therapies—such as analgesia, nutrition and physiotherapy—into a single protocol to optimise patient outcomes.
Goal-directed fluid therapy (GDFT): A strategy of administering intravenous fluids based on dynamic hemodynamic parameters to maintain adequate tissue perfusion and prevent fluid overload.
References
- Personalised electronic health programme for recovery after major abdominal surgery: a multicentre, single-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial. The Lancet Digital Health (2023).
- Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) Reduces Hospital Costs and Improve Clinical Outcomes in Liver Surgery: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery (2020).
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