ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION The postoperative care of the low-risk ovarian cancer patient differs little from the postoperative care of other women undergoing abdominal surgery. In general, early ambulation and pulmonary toilet are encouraged, with careful attention to diet and fluid management. Minimally invasive techniques and neoadjuvant chemotherapy may be trends in practice that contribute to patients having lower surgical acuity. However, older women tend to have more medical comorbidities, and women with advanced-stage disease taken to surgery may be more nutritionally depleted, may require more surgical procedures to optimally resect their disease, and thus have higher risk of infection and other postoperative complications.
