Effects of Prone Position After Major Abdominal Surgery

Evaluation of postoperative prone position after major abdominal surgery. A randomized clinical trial of 100+100 patients and further add a voice/speech/singing protocol.

The patients will be randomized to the standard ERAS-protocol, enhanced recovery after surgery with or without adding periods of prone position after surgery.

They will be followed by protocol both as a momentum effect (experimental study) on POD 2-5 and also POD 7.

The aim is evaluation of prone position in order to improve the ventilation and hopefully diminish the risk of for example pneumonia and thromboembolism.

Inclusion criteria Patients referred to the Department of Surgery for major abdominal surgery of the esophagus, gastric- or pancreas surgery aim to cure.

Exclusion criteria Patients unable to understand Swedish in writing or speaking, preoperatively unable to perform a prone position.

The participation is voluntary and demands an inform consent from the patient operated upon.

The primary outcome is oxygen saturation and lung complications after surgery.

The secondary outcome is measurement of lung volumes, patient experience (7th graded Lickert scale), days of hospital care, 30 days complications etc.

Further investigations are perioperative properties as BMI, other forms of surgery, etc., and continues measurement of blood pressure, respiration frequency, heartrate, tubes and drainages, postoperative analgesic, blood samples with signs of bleeding, inflammation, infection.