Is postoperative proximal decompression a necessary complement to elective colon resection?

Postoperative nasogastric suction is not a necessary complement to elective colon resection. We studied two groups of patients who had elective colon resection: nasogastric suction was used in the postoperative management of 53 patients, while 23 patients were managed without nasogastric suction. The morbidity and mortality rates were comparable in the two groups.