Abdominal Surgical Interventions: Local and Systemic Consequences for the Immune System-a Prospective Study on Elective Gastrointestinal Surgery1

Specific immune cell recruitment and cytokine production play an important role in post-trauma events. Measuring distinct local immune cell repertoires and cytokines provides answers as to how the different phases of postoperative immune events proceed. The evaluation of the local response may provide additional criteria for the evaluation of operative trauma. This knowledge may be helpful in detecting postoperative pathological aberrancies.