Table 3.
Number of documented episodes of selected complications between days 1 and 5 after surgery
| Total | Chewing gum | Standard care | P † | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suspected or confirmed anastomotic leak | 13 | 6 | 7 | 0·815 |
| Bowel obstruction | 2 | 1 | 1 | – |
| Confirmed or suspected wound infection | 5 | 2 | 3 | – |
| Confirmed or suspected other infection | 20 | 9 | 11 | 0·691 |
| Vomiting*/nausea/ileus | 47 | 19 | 28 | 0·197 |
| Pneumonia | 17 | 8 | 9 | 0·847 |
| Bleeding | 16 | 8 | 8 | 0·958 |
| Intra‐abdominal collection | 1 | 1 | 0 | – |
| Other | 49 | 26 | 23 | 0·582 |
| Death | 3 | 3 | 0 | – |
*
Data on vomiting taken only from adverse event forms; no participant‐reported data used.
†
χ2 test; no formal statistical comparison was done when few participants experienced the complication.