• G M Lloyd, R Kirby, D M Hemingway, F B Keane, A S Miller, and P Neary.
• Department of Surgery, Leicester Royal Infirmary, Infirmary Square, Leicester LE1 5WW, UK. GMLloyd@doctors.org.uk
• Surg Endosc. 2010 Jun 1;24(6):1434-9.

BackgroundEnhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) programs can accelerate recovery and shorten the hospital stay after colorectal resections. The RAPID (remove, ambulate, postoperative analgesia, introduce diet) protocol is a simplified ERAS program that consists of a simplified, user-friendly single-page pro forma schedule. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of the RAPID protocol on patients undergoing both laparoscopic and open colorectal resections in two specialized colorectal units.MethodsA prospective, two-center study assessed 117 age-matched patients undergoing open or laparoscopic colorectal resection to compare the postoperative course for patients using the RAPID protocol with those treated in a traditional manner.ResultsOf the 117 patients studied, 70 underwent laparoscopic resection (55 with the RAPID protocol) and 47 underwent open resection (25 with the RAPID protocol). Patients undergoing laparoscopic resections with the RAPID protocol had a significantly shorter hospital stay (p = 0.01) and tolerance of a full diet (p = 0.002). Similarly, patients undergoing open resections with the RAPID protocol also have a significantly shorter hospital stay (p = 0.04).ConclusionThe RAPID protocol is a user-friendly, easy, and effective tool that facilitates earlier tolerance of diet and discharge from the hospital for patients undergoing laparoscopic or open colorectal resections.

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