OBJECTIVE： To investigate the effects of aerosol inhalation of ambroxol combined with gentamicin on postoperative related indexes of esophageal cancer patients. METHODS： 60 patients underwent esophageal cancer operation were retrospective analyzed and divided into control group （30 cases） and observation group （30 cases） according to drug use. Three days before surgery， control group was given 5％ Glucose injection 250 mL intravenously， twice a day； observation group was given Ambroxol hydrochloride injection 50 mL added into 5％ Glucose injection 250 mL intravenously， twice a day. After operation， both groups were given anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs. Control group was additionally given aerosol inhalation of Gentamicin sulfate injection 80 000 units added into 0.9％ Sodium chloride injection 20 mL， 4 times a day. Observation group was additionally given aerosol inhalation of Ambroxol hydrochloride injection 10 mL added into 0.9％ Sodium chloride injection 20 mL， 4 times a day， on the basis of control group. Both groups were treated for 5 days. The occurrence of postoperative pulmonary complications were compared between 2 groups. The levels of CRP， TNF-α， PaO2， SaO2， oxygenation index （PaO2/FiO2）， the occurrence of ADR were observed before and after operation. RESULTS： The total incidence of postoperative pulmonary complications in observation group was significantly lower than control group， with statistical significance （P＜0.05）. Before operation， there was no statistical significance in the levels of CRP， TNF-α， PaO2， SaO2 and PaO2/FiO2 between 2 groups （P＞0.05）. After operation， the levels of CRP and TNF-α in 2 groups were significantly lower than before operation； the observation group was significantly lower than the control group. PaO2，SaO2 and PaO2/FiO2 of 2 groups were significantly higher than before operation； the observation group was significantly higher than the control group， with statistical significance （P＜0.05）. No obvious ADR was found in 2 groups during medication. CONCLUSIONS： The aerosol inhalation of ambroxol combined with gentamicin can reduce postoperative inflammatory factors of esophageal cancer patients， and promotes the recovery of respiratory function without increasing the incidence of ADR.