Background: Fast-track (FT) protocols accelerate patient's recovery and shorten hospital stay as a result of the optimization of the perioperative care they offer. The aim of this review is to examine the latest evidence for fast-track protocols when compared with standard care in elective colorectal surgery involving segmental colonic and/or rectal resection.
Materials and methods: All randomized controlled trials and controlled clinical trials on FT colorectal surgery were reviewed systematically. The main end points were short-term morbidity, length of primary postoperative hospital stay, length of total postoperative stay, readmission rate, and mortality. Quality assessment and data extraction were performed independently by two observers.
Results: Eleven studies were eligible for analysis (four randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and seven controlled clinical trials (CCT)), including 1,021 patients. Primary hospital stay (weighted mean difference -2.35 days, 95% confidence interval (CI) -3.24 to -1.46 days, P < 0.00001) and total hospital stay (weighted mean difference -2.46 days, 95% CI -3.43 to -1.48 days, P < 0.00001) were significantly lower for FT programs. Morbidity was also lower in the FT group. Readmission rates were not significantly different. No increase in mortality was found.
Conclusions: FT protocols show high-level evidence on reducing primary and total hospital stay without compromising patients' safety offering lower morbidity and the same readmission rates. Enhanced recovery programs should become a mainstay of elective colorectal surgery.