Background: Surgical site infections (SSIs) increase mortality, hospital stays, additional medical treatment, and medical costs. Subcutaneous drains prevent SSIs in gynecological and breast surgeries; however, their clinical impact in abdominal surgery remains unclear.
Aim: To investigate whether subcutaneous drains were beneficial in abdominal surgery using a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Methods: The database search used PubMed, MEDLINE, and the Cochrane Library. The following inclusion criteria were set for the systematic review: (1) Randomized controlled trial studies comparing SSIs after abdominal surgery with or without subcutaneous drains; and (2) Studies that described clinical outcomes, such as SSIs, seroma formation, the length of hospital stays, and mortality.
Results: Eight studies were included in this meta-analysis. The rate of total SSIs was significantly lower in the drained group (54/771, 7.0%) than in the control group (89/759, 11.7%), particularly in gastrointestinal surgery. Furthermore, the rate of superficial SSIs was slightly lower in the drained group (31/517, 6.0%) than in the control group (49/521, 9.4%). No significant differences were observed in seroma formation between the groups. Hospital stays were shorter in the drained group than in the control group.
Conclusion: Subcutaneous drains after abdominal surgery prevented SSIs and reduced hospital stays but did not significantly affect seroma formation. The timing of drain removal needs to be reconsidered in future studies.
Keywords: Abdominal surgery; Mortality; Seroma formation; Subcutaneous drain; Surgical site infections.
©The Author(s) 2023. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.