Response to: postoperative ileus, a diagnosis by exclusion?

We thank Dr. Wu et al. for their interest in our article [1]. Postoperative ileus (POI) is considered to be inevitable after abdominal surgery by many and has been underestimated consequently. We have shown that POI not only affects patient comfort and recovery, but is also associated with severe complications such as anastomotic leakage. It has been unclear until now the cause and effect of POI, though the inflammatory response plays a significant role in these conditions. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved