Impact of nasogastric decompression on gastric tube size after McKeown minimally invasive esophagectomy: A retrospective controlled cohort study

Purpose: This retrospective study evaluated the impact of nasogastric decompression (NGD) on gastric tube size to optimize the Enhanced Recovery After Surgery protocol after McKeown minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE). Methods: Overall, 640 patients were divided into two groups according to nasogastric tube (NGT) placement intraoperatively. Using propensity score matching, 203 pairs of individuals were identified for gastric tube size comparisons on postoperative days (PODs) 1 and 5. Results: Gastric tubes were larger in the non-NGD group than the NGD group on POD 1 (vertical distance from the right edge of the gastric tube to the right edge of the thoracic vertebra, 22.2 [0–34.7] vs. 0 [0–22.5] mm, p <0.001). No difference was noted between the groups on POD 5 (18.5 [0–31.7] vs. 18.0 [0–25.4] mm, p =0.070). Univariate and multivariate analyses showed that non-NGD was an independent risk factor for gastric tube distention on POD 1. No difference in the incidence of complications (Clavien–Dindo（CD）≥2) (40 (23.0%) vs. 46 (19,8%), p =0.440), pneumonia (CD≥2) (29 [16.8%] vs. 30 [12.9%], p =0.280) or anastomotic leakage (CD≥3) (3 [1.7%] vs. 6 [2.6%], p =0.738) were noted between the without gastric tube distention group and with gastric tube distention group. Conclusion: Intraoperative NGT placement reduces gastric tube distention rates after McKeown MIE on POD 1, but the complications are similar to those of unconventional NGT placement. This finding is based on NGT placement or replacement at the appropriate time postoperatively through bedside chest X-ray examination.