Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Surgery is the mainstay for the management of gastrointestinal cancer patients, but it is associated with various complications. Sq identification cf pre-operative factors associated with post-operative complications is essential. Sarcopenia is increasingly recognized as a prognostic factor of post-operative complications following various cancer surgeries. This study aimed to determine whether precperative sarcopenia is associated with postoperative complications following gastrointestinal cancer surgery. METHODS: A prospective observational study was conducted from April 2019 to August 2020 at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, Nepal. Eighty-nine patients undergoing elective curative gastrointestinal cancer surgery were included in the study. Patients less than 16 years and who did not undergo curative resections were excluded. Sarcopenia was defined using the Skeletal Muscle Index (SMI), which was measured via abdominal computed tomography imaging. Postoperative complications were graded using the Clavien-Dindo classification. Statistical analyses were performed to evaluate the associations of preoperative sarcopenia with postoperative complications using SPSS version 23. RESULTS: Among 89 patients, the mean age was 55.6±13 years, 48 (53.93%) were male, and sarcopenia was present in 36 (40.45%) patients. Clavien-Dindo ≥3 level complication occurred in 17 (47.22%) patients with sarcopenia. CONCLUSIONS: Almost half of the patient with sarcopenia developed post operative complications.