Key Concepts

• Significant alteration in bowel function altering a patient’s quality of life commonly occurs after restorative proctectomy or low anterior bowel resection. This has been termed low anterior resection syndrome (LARS).
• Using a Delphi analysis, experts including patients with LARS have been able to describe the condition as eight symptoms and five consequences.
• No standardized tool exists that determines its severity. Careful questioning starting around 3 months after establishment of intestinal continuity is important to determine treatment options.
• It is important to determine if correctable problems that can mimic LARS are leading to these symptoms.
• Treatment starts with setting expectations, educating patients, and evaluating treatment outcomes. This involves a systematic incremental approach to treatment with precise written instructions and monitoring results.