Introduction: Four of five patients affected by Crohn’s disease (CD) require at least one surgical procedure. Minimally invasive surgery and strictureplasty were introduced to ameliorate the burden of surgery in these patients. However, extensive bowel resection and/or stoma creation may be still necessary. The aim of this study was to evaluate the predictors of recovery, complications and quality of life on an unselected cohort of patients submitted to intestinal surgery for CD. Patients and methods: Forty-seven consecutive patients admitted for intestinal surgery for CD in our department from 2006 to 2008 were enrolled in this prospective study. The median CD duration was 79 (3-264) months and 11 patients presented a fistulizing phenotype. CD was localized in small bowel in 38 patients and in the large bowel in 9 patients; 7 patients had both localization. Surgical predictors (video assisted intestinal surgery, strictureplasty, stoma creation, ileal resection and colonic resection) as well as clinical predictors (age, gender, CD duration, activity and localization, recurrent CD) were evaluated. Outcome measures were medical and surgical complication, reoperation, day of first bowel movement, postoperative hospital stay and Barthel’s recovery score. After at least 3 months, an interview that included the Cleveland Global Quality of Life score, the Body Image Score and the Harvey-Bradshaw Activity Index (HBAI) was made. Univariate and multivariate analysis were performed. Results: Stoma creation was the only independent predictor of the post operative hospital stay (p=0.006) in a model that also included minimally invasive surgery, colonic resection, small bowel resection and CD duration (R2=0.38). Patients who had strictureplasty had their first bowel movement later than those who had bowel resection (p=0.042). Barthel’s score on the 3rd postoperative day significantly correlated with number of intestinal localisation, stoma creation and perianal CD. After follow up, CGQL score correlated only with HBAI (tau=-0.42, p<0.001). Body image score was independently predicted by the HBAI (p=0.006) and the use of video assisted surgery (p=0.036). Conclusions: Stoma creation was associated to a long post operative hospital stay and strictureplasty was associated to a slower recovery of bowel function. However, none of them seemed related to postoperative complication. Body image score was independently predicted by disease activity and the use of video assisted surgery. Health related quality of life appeared to be significantly related only to current disease activity independently from the surgical procedure.