Abstract: OBJECTIVE To evaluate the intraoperative infusion of Ringer’s lactate and hydroxyethyl starch 130/0.4 and sodium chloride injection on the outcomes after laparoscopic gastrointestinal carcinoma radical prostatectomy. METHODS This was a prospective randomized double-blinded study. Eighty-eight patients with American Society of Anesthesiologist physical status Ⅰ-Ⅱ scheduled for major abdominal cancer surgery were randomized into 4 groups: group Ⅰ(bolus with Ringer’s lactate, continues with Ringer’s lactate), group Ⅱ(bolus with hydroxyethyl starch 130/0.4 and sodium chloride injection, continuous with Ringer’s lactate), group Ⅲ(bolus with hydroxyethyl starch 130/0.4 and sodium chloride injection, continuous with hydroxyethyl starch 130/0.4 and sodium chloride injection), groups Ⅳ(preloading with Ringer’s lactate, bolus with starch, continuous with Ringer’s lactate). Bolus fluid treatment was with 9 mL·kg^-1 either hydroxyethyl starch 130/0.4 and sodium chloride injection or Ringer’s lactate, followed by a continuous infusion with 12 mL·kg^-1 of either hydroxyethyl starch 130/0.4 and sodium chloride injection or Ringer’s lactate over 1 h. Further fluid therapy was managed at the discretion of the attending anesthesiologist maintaining stroke volume variance (SVV) value within 13%. Outcome data consisted of postoperative gastrointestinal recovery time, complications and length of hospital stay. RESULTS The order of the infusions had no impact on the outcome. Both the administration of ≥2 L of Ringer’s lactate and the development of a surgical complication were associated with a longer recovery time of intestinal peristalsis and recovery eating time (two-way ANOVA, P=0.020), but only surgical complications prolonged the length of hospital stay(P=0.001). The independent effect of Ringer’s lactate and complications on recovery eating time amounted to 2 days each. The infusion of ≥1 L of hydroxyethyl starch 130/0.4 and sodium chloride injection did not adversely affect gastrointestinal recovery and maintained urinary excretion better than Ringer’s lactate. CONCLUSION Ringer’s lactate but not hydroxyethyl starch 130/0.4 and sodium chloride injection prolongs the gastrointestinal recovery time in patients undergoing laparoscopic gastrointestinal cancer surgery. Only the development of surgical complications prolong the length of hospital stay.