Abstract: Objective To explore the effect and safety of early oral feeding following endoscopic submucosal dissection. Methods A total of 82 patients who underwent endoscopic submucosal dissection were randomly divided into control group and observation group, with 41 cases in each group and in the observation group, 4 patients discharged against medical advice thus there were only 37 cases. Early oral feeding was implemented in the observation group including drinking 10min after anesthesia recovery, full liquid diet 2 h after the surgery, soft diet 7 h after the surgery and normal diet 7 d after the surgery. Conventional feeding program was conducted in the control group including drinking 1h after anesthesia recovery, full liquid diet at second postoperative 24h, soft diet at third postoperative 24 h and normal diet 7 d after the surgery. Patient in the both groups took medications and received health education. Abdominal pain, bleeding, infection and the incidence of perforation in the two groups were compared. Results The comparison of complications in the two groups indicated no statistical significance (16% VS 22%,P=0.521). Conclusion Early oral feeding following endoscopic submucosal dissection is acceptable for patients since it shortens the fasting time after the surgery while no higher incidence of complications is found. It is safe in clinical practice.

Key words: endoscopic submucosal dissection, upper gastrointestinal tract, rapid rehabilitation nursing, early oral feeding