The efficacy of whole gut irrigation with polyethylene glycol electrolyte solution in elective colorectal surgery for cancer.

Sixty-four patients undergoing elective operations for cancer of the colon and rectum were given mechanical bowel preparation in the form of whole gut irrigation with polyethylene glycol electrolyte solution. When their colonic cleansing scores were compared, it was found that the preparation was significantly less effective in the left colon (n = 49) than in the right (n = 15), the mean (SEM) scores being 3.8 (0.56) and 2.65 (1.01), respectively, p less than 0.001. We then compared the scores of 26 patients with stenosing lesions with those of 38 that were not: in the right colon the score for stenosing tumours was 3.9 (0.14) compared with 3.8 (0.25) for non-stenosing tumours. In the left colon, however, they were 2.3 (0.23) and 2.9 (0.18), respectively (p less than 0.01). We conclude that stenosis of the colon caused by malignant lesions reduces the efficacy of mechanical bowel preparation with polyethylene glycol electrolyte solution in the left colon but not in the right colon.