Stapled versus hand-sewn intestinal anastomosis in pediatric patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Background The safety and feasibility of stapled intestinal anastomosis have been widely reported in adults. However, the efficacy of stapled anastomosis (SA) in children is unclear. The aim of this study was to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of SA compared with hand-sewn anastomosis (HA) in pediatric patients. Methods A systematic literature search was performed using PubMed, the Cochrane Library, and Scopus databases. Studies comparing outcomes of children aged < 7 years and subgroups of children aged < 1 year who underwent SA or HA were included. Primary outcomes were anastomotic leakage and anastomotic stricture. Mean differences (MDs) with 95 % confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated for continuous variables. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95 % CIs were calculated for dichotomous variables. Interstudy heterogeneity was assessed using the chi-squared test and was quantified using the I² statistic. Results One randomized control trial and five retrospective cohort studies, comprising 633 cases (229 SA cases and 404 HA cases), were included. No significant differences were observed in anastomotic leakage (6.5 % vs. 7.4 %; OR, 0.93; 95 % CI, 0.37–2.34; p = 0.88), anastomotic stricture (4.1 % vs. 9.3 %; OR, 0.54; 95 % CI, 0.19–1.51; p = 0.24), ileus (7.1 % vs. 9.3 %, OR, 2.35; 95 % CI, 0.15–37.51; p = 0.54), anastomosis-related complications (9.5 % vs. 10.9 %, OR, 0.98; 95 % CI, 0.52–1.86; p = 0.96; I2 = 39 %), and time until full-feeding (MD = -3.57 days; 95 % CI, -11.36 to 4.23; p = 0.37) between SA and HA. Operative time was significantly shorter in SA than in HA in children aged < 1 year (MD = -20.36 min; 95 % CI, -26.13 to -14.59). Conclusions SA required shorter operative time and was comparable to HA in the overall complication rate. Although the evidence was insufficient, SA could be an option for intestinal anastomosis in children.