Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) Improves Length of Stay and Decreases Complications After Resection of Abdominal Neuroblastoma

Did you know there's an ERAS protocol for neuroblastoma? Hi, I'm Doctor Sophia Schermerhorn from Cincinnati Children's, and this multi-center prospective study evaluated a structured ERAS pathway for children undergoing abdominal neuroblastoma resection. This ERAS protocol included 20 evidence-based elements spanning the entire perioperative process, from things like preoperative counseling. Hydrate loading, standardized multimodal analgesia, early feeding, and early mobilization. The results were striking. Length of stay decreased from about 7 days to 3.7 days. Post-operative opioid use dropped by over half, and patients resume regular diets and ambulated about 3 days earlier. Most notably, the proportion of patients experience. any postoperative complication decreased by over 50% as well. Patients were also cleared to resume adjuvant chemotherapy earlier at around 8 days and opposed to 10 days. The takeaway is that a structured ERAS pathway meaningfully improves recovery, even after complex neuroblastoma resections, and represents a tangible opportunity to standardize perioperative care.