Objective To investigate the clinical nursing path to promote recovery of gastrointestinal function after esophageal cancer surgery.Methods The postoperative patients were randomly divided into treatment group of 40 cases and control group of 42 cases. We chose the right time to acupuncture moxa the treatment group Zusanliand Tianshuon the first postoperative 1d,. The control group was used conventional Western medicine care measures. Results Comparison of the two groups,the treatment group and the control group recovery time of bowel sounds( 40. 5 ± 1. 1) h、( 45. 2 ± 5. 3) h,the first time of flatus was( 59. 1 ± 4. 2) h、( 68. 7 ± 3. 7) h,the first time of anal defecation was( 72. 2 ± 4. 2) h、( 95. 3 ± 5. 4) h,the differences were statistically significant( P 0. 01). Conclusion Choose the right time to acupuncture moxa Zusanliand Tianshucan significantly shorten the time defecation exhaust after esophageal cancer surgery,promote the recovery of gastrointestinal function.