The Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Xijing Hospital affiliated to the Fourth Military Medical University was separated from the Department of General Surgery in 1991. It is a discipline certificated to authorize master degree and doctor degree. It is the standing committee member of national and military association on clinical nutritional science, key and predominant discipline in Shaanxi province. Under the leading of the director Zhao Qingchuan and the specialists of the old generation such as Gao Zhiqing, Zhang Zhenqian, Wang Junyi, Wang Weizhong, Dong Guanglong, the Department has made progress in the treatment and research of gastroenteric tumor, intestinal fistula，mini-invasive surgery and small bowel transplantation, which has made the Department as one of top disciplines in gastrointestinal surgery.

The surgical treatment and combined therapy for gastroenteric tumor are constantly focal point in The Department. Good result has been obtained, and the five year survival rate is at the top level in our country. The Department has investigated and applied enteral nutrition and parenteral nutrition, and many critical patients with pancreatitis and intestinal fistula were rescued. In 1999 the Department has successfully performed a partial vital vascularized small bowel transplantation, which is the first case of its kind in China, and the patient survives the longest in Asia, afterwards, 3 more cases of vital vascularized small bowel transplantation have been performed. In 1996, laparoscopic cholecystectomy has been applied in clinical practice with mini-invasive surgery, such as laparoscopic gastrectomy, radical resection of colonic carcinoma, portal azygous disconnection and Swedish adjustable gastric band, which has formed the characteristics of the Department. With 108 beds, there are over 2,000 patients are hospitalized in the Department per year. There are over 2,000 operations performed per year, among which large operation are more than 90%.

There are 7 professors and associate professors, and 5 of them are postgraduate supervisors. The Department has been sponsored by 26 funds from national, provincial, and military scientific research foundations, among which 8 from National Natural Scientific Foundation, 8 from Military Scientific Research Foundation of PLA, and 10 from Provincial Scientific Foundation. Since 1990s, the Department has been awarded one second prize of military medical achievement, one second prize of military scientific technical progress, one second prize of scientific technical progress in Shaanxi province. The Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery is now developing ahead with high quality in clinical work and rigorous scientific research.