Abstract: OBJECTIVE To investigate the effect of anesthesia methods on postoperative respiratory tract infections and T lymphocyte and stress level, in order to provide a basis for reducing postoperative respiratory tract infections in patients with gastric cancer. METHODS A total of 105 cases of gastric cancer underwent surgical treatment were collected, and were divided into observation group and control group. Patients in observation group (53 cases) were given intravenous anesthesia combined with epidural anesthesia combined with postoperative epidural analgesia, and in control group (52 cases) were treated by compound intravenous anesthesia analgesia after operation. The postoperative infection rates, and changes of T lymphocyte and immune stress indexes before and after anesthesia of the two groups of patients were observed. RESULTS In 7 d after the surgery, the infection rate of observation group (3.77%) was lower than that in control group of 21.15%, and the difference was significant (P<0.05), The T lymphocyte index and stress index of norepinephrine before anesthesia and after operation at different time points of observation group had no significant differences, and the postoperative blood glucose were higher than those before anesthesia, and the difference was significant (P<0.05). Cortisol and adrenaline were significantly lower than those in control group at 72 h after operation (P<0.05). The CD₃⁺, CD₄⁺, CD₈⁺ and CD₄⁺/CD₈⁺ ratio of control group after operation were lower than those before anesthesia, and the differences were significant (P<0.05), and stress indexed at different time points after surgery were higher than that before anesthesia (P<0.05). CONCLUSION Postoperative epidural analgesia combined with epidural anesthesia postoperative epidural analgesia has a certain effect on postoperative respiratory tract infections, and the interference of T lymphocytes is less and the stress state is obvious, which may reduce the postoperative infections.