₦airaland Forum

Brazino:
What's the rationale Behind our doctors telling patients not to eat for a few days after a surgery is been carried out on them?
If doctors in other parts of the World like In Europe, don't tell their patients so, then why is Nigeria's different?
Could it be due to Technology?

most surgeries that have to do with knocking out the patient demands this to avoid food moving from the tummy into the respiratory tract damaging the lungs and lots more. This is not about technology, it's common everywhere.

CalabarPikin:
Probably because food may add weight, which may cause the stitches to break or stretch out, leading to another complications or something.


I no be doctor or anything related ooh
Just assuming

Lmao
Has got nothing to do with stitches breaking
The stitches are tougher than your imagination

Chibuezem:
most surgeries that have to do with knocking out the patient demands this to avoid food moving from the tummy into the respiratory tract damaging the lungs and lots more. This is not about technology, it's common everywhere.

Do you have a link/reference for this? I would like to read and find out more

Lorechino:
Person wey wan d Alive no d ask this kind question.

Do you eat eba, ewdu, landed yam immediately in Canada!?

Do you have epileptic power in Canada?
Compare the medical facilities in Canada🇨🇦 with that of Nigeria 🇳🇬 since una d ment

Lastly na Tinubu d govern Canada?
In Canada they don't stitch patients, but here in Nigeria 70 percent of medical Centers still use that old method of stitching.

Another ignoramus
So if they don’t stitch patient , what do they do ? Gum them ? 😂😂😂

Brazino:
What's the rationale Behind our doctors telling patients not to eat for a few days after a surgery is been carried out on them?
If doctors in other parts of the World like In Europe, don't tell their patients so, then why is Nigeria's different?
Could it be due to Technology?

It depends on the kind of surgery ! Abdominal and intestinal surgeries , you need not eat until paralytic ileus is over . Airways surgeries like we have in ENT will have you eating after few hours upon recovery from General Anaesthesia

Brazino:
You haven't answered the question yet.

You only just rephrased my question

I deducted the answer from his response. It means that Nigerian doctors are using equipments not up to the level of those ones abroad. When they get to that level, they will tell you to eat.

This is what i believe is the reason for it, I guess thats the safest way for them so as to curtail any future risk.

Brazino:
What's the rationale Behind our doctors telling patients not to eat for a few days after a surgery is been carried out on them?
If doctors in other parts of the World like In Europe, don't tell their patients so, then why is Nigeria's different?
Could it be due to Technology?

It is probably because of postoperative complications like temporary paralysis of the gut and leakage at the surgical site in the intestines
Well, the Nigerian approach is often based on outdated caution, lack of ERAS adoption, and limited resources for close monitoring. In contrast, Canada follows modern evidence showing that early eating is safe and beneficial for most surgeries

Seun and Nairaland should consider the upvoting and down voting system of some other forums like Reddit, so that comments that are actually useful to the original questions can be upvoted to the top.
This nairaland system where the first one million comments are usually of people just catching cruise makes it hard for others to get meaning information from the thread without searching and searching.

Brazino:
What's the rationale Behind our doctors telling patients not to eat for a few days after a surgery is been carried out on them?
If doctors in other parts of the World like In Europe, don't tell their patients so, then why is Nigeria's different?
Could it be due to Technology?

Oyibo eat lite food, while we Africans eat heavy food. Heavy meal Wil complicate your stitches.

Brazino:
What's the rationale Behind our doctors telling patients not to eat for a few days after a surgery is been carried out on them?
If doctors in other parts of the World like In Europe, don't tell their patients so, then why is Nigeria's different?
Could it be due to Technology?

Any surgery that involves bowel manipulation requires time for the post op ileus to resolve
Most Cs bowel motility returns in 24hrs
Most fibroid surgery bowel motility returns within 24 to 48 hrs
But Most exploratory laparotomy that involves bowel resection at least within 5 days cos small intestine hrs, stomach 1 to 2 days and large intestine 3 to 5 days
If u violate this there is a high chance the patient will land in the theatre a 2nd time.

Not just surgeries but stomach surgeries.
You can ignore your doctor's advice and see how far your stubbornness can take you.

Not eating immediately after surgery gives your digestive system time to regain their normal functioning.

Brazino:
What's the rationale Behind our doctors telling patients not to eat for a few days after a surgery is been carried out on them?
If doctors in other parts of the World like In Europe, don't tell their patients so, then why is Nigeria's different?
Could it be due to Technology?

The kind of foods they eat over there is not the kind we eat here, you allow some people to eat here and the next thing he does is order for 5 raps of fufu and probably he gets that stitches torn up.

I have never heard that. But I have heard not to eat before the surgery, not after.

Research on Abdominal Adhesions:

Yes, touching or handling the intestine, particularly during surgery or due to injury, can affect it. While gentle handling during procedures like surgery is necessary, it can also lead to complications like adhesions, inflammation, or even perforation. Furthermore, excessive or improper handling can disrupt the delicate balance of the digestive system and potentially cause further issues.

kingar:
If they tell you not to eat don’t eat, once they’ve gotten to the level of eating immediately after surgery they’ll announce it,

Thats not correct. It depends on the type of surgery and anaesthesia used. It also depends what the health of patient is.

WesleyPepper:
Nigerians are one of the loudest yet ignorant folks on the face of the earth .
Especially those clowns who luckily found themselves in first world countries.

Who told the clown every patient can eat immediately after surgery in Canada or anywhere for that matter and that patients cannot eat immediately after surgery here in Nigeria .

- There are various factors that determine whether a patient can eat immediately after surgery or not .

- E.g A patient cannot eat immediately after surgery anywhere in the world after some major surgeries involving extensive bowel resection .


Here in Nigeria too, we feed patients few hours after thyroid surgery or key hole procedures such as removal of the gall bladder .

- If you operated on the leg or hand eg fixation of a fracture . Patients eat immediately they recover from Anaesthesia

So eating or not eating after surgeries depend on plenty factors.

In a bid to run down Nigerian Doctors, the lousy clown has only exposed his own ignorance

Damn! This guy is wicked! I hope those clowns get to see this

They tell you not to eat before surgery not after it.

They don't want to deal with a smelly gut.

Brazino:
You haven't answered the question yet.

You only just rephrased my question

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂bbnnnnnmm jjnnnn nnnnnn jnnnn bnn hhjjjjjccdl

I was shocked as a new nurse when I heard pt's plan post surgery can eat and drink

Brazino:
What's the rationale Behind our doctors telling patients not to eat for a few days after a surgery is been carried out on them?
If doctors in other parts of the World like In Europe, don't tell their patients so, then why is Nigeria's different?
Could it be due to Technology?

It is not all surgeries. Only in most abdominal surgeries.

The knowledge was that for abdominal surgeries, the gut/intestines are handled so they need some time to recover.

We wait for the "bowel sounds" to return which shows the intestines have resumed normal movement, otherwise called "peristalsis".

If you eat before the intestines start moving, the food cannot be pushed all the way down and this causes INTESTINAL OBSTRUCTION. If it's serious enough, it might require another surgery to fix.

However, knowledge keeps evolving, so that practice is gradually wearing away

Maybe the “no food” advice is just a protective measure because we no get enough machines here to detect internal complications fast.
Play-safe medicine. 🇳🇬 vs 🇨🇦

The rationale behind doctors advising patients to avoid eating for a few days after surgery (known as postoperative fasting) varies depending on the type of surgery, medical protocols, and healthcare infrastructure. Here’s why Nigerian doctors might recommend this, and how it differs from practices in Europe or other developed regions:
1. Type of Surgery & Anesthesia Effects
• After abdominal surgeries (e.g., bowel resection, appendectomy), the digestive system may need time to recover. Eating too soon can cause nausea, vomiting, or bowel obstruction.
• In general anesthesia, the digestive tract temporarily slows down (postoperative ileus), so early feeding could lead to complications.
2. Risk of Aspiration Pneumonia
• If a patient vomits while recovering from anesthesia, stomach contents can enter the lungs (aspiration), causing pneumonia.
• Nigerian hospitals may have less advanced monitoring (e.g., fewer recovery nurses, limited ICU beds), making fasting a safer precaution.
3. Limited Postoperative Care Resources
• In Europe/US, hospitals often have enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocols, where patients are encouraged to eat sooner with close monitoring.
• In Nigeria, due to staff shortages, limited ICU access, and fewer emergency response tools, doctors may prefer fasting to reduce risks.
4. Infection & Surgical Complications
• In cases of gut surgeries, eating too early can cause leakage or infections (e.g., peritonitis).
• Nigerian surgeons may be more cautious due to higher infection rates (from poor sterilization, antibiotic resistance, or delayed surgeries).
5. Cultural & Historical Practices
• Older medical training in Nigeria (influenced by British colonial practices) may have traditionally emphasized longer fasting.
• In contrast, Western medicine has shifted toward early feeding (based on newer research showing faster recovery with controlled diets).

Lorechino:
Person wey wan d Alive no d ask this kind question.

Do you eat eba, ewdu, landed yam immediately in Canada!?

Do you have epileptic power in Canada?
Compare the medical facilities in Canada🇨🇦 with that of Nigeria 🇳🇬 since una d ment

Lastly na Tinubu d govern Canada?
In Canada they don't stitch patients, but here in Nigeria 70 percent of medical Centers still use that old method of stitching.

Three cartons of Trophy and three plates of goat meat pepper soup for you.

Why do you even want to eat after surgery sef , food should be the last thing in your mind, processing food uses up a lot of energy you would use to heal

Most people die from not eating by doctors order.