The removal of drainage tube after rectal cancer surgery depends on the recovery condition of the patient, in case of good recovery after surgery, it is usually removed around 5~9 days after surgery, and you need to ask your attending doctor about the details.
After rectal cancer surgery, a drainage tube will be routinely inserted into the abdominal cavity to drain the fluid in the abdominal cavity and observe the condition.
In the early postoperative period, the drainage tube can drain the fluid and effusion left over from the surgery, and can determine whether there is active bleeding in the abdominal cavity according to the color of the drained fluid and the amount of drained fluid. If in the short term, the drainage flow is high and bright red blood, it is mostly considered that the postoperative hemostasis is not complete and there is active bleeding in the abdominal cavity.
In the mid-term postoperative period, the drainage tube drains mostly bright yellowish fluid, which represents fair wound healing. If the patient has an anastomotic fistula after surgery, fecal material may appear in the drainage tube, which means that the wound healing is not good and a second surgery is needed.
Waiting for the patient to eat normally, stool discharge is normal, to ensure that no anastomotic fistula occurs, then the drain tube can be removed, this process usually takes 5 days to 9 days.
After rectal cancer surgery, it is recommended to follow the arrangement and guidance of professional doctors, standardize the treatment, and judge whether to pull out the drain tube according to the actual situation.