Introduction
Postoperative ileus is a common condition occurring after abdominal
surgery and reflecting a deceleration or complete arrest in intestinal
motility (Venara et al., 2020). This complication is extremely frequent
and varies according to the series, affecting between 10% and 25% of
patients following abdominal surgery (Chapman et al., 2018). The
postoperative ileus (POI) induces its own morbidity and prolongs the
length of hospital stays. The costs associated with POI are
considerable. In the USA, the annual total care costs for all paralytic
ileus hospitalisations increased from 7.1 billion dollars in 2001 to
12.3 billion dollars in 2011 (Solanki et al., 2020). This review
addresses current knowledge on mechanisms responsible for POI and the
pharmacological strategies currently employed or under development to
prevent or reduce POI.