Perforated appendicitis treated with laparoscopic appendicectomy or open appendicectomy: A meta-analysis

AIM: This analysis compared the impact of laparoscopic appendicectomy (LA) and open appendicectomy (OA) on treating adult perforated appendicitis (PA). METHODS: Articles relating to LA and OA in treating PA were retrieved from databases including PubMed, Cochrane Library and Embase since their founding to January 2022. These articles were independently filtered based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria by two investigators. The quality of these articles was assessed and article data were extracted. Dichotomous data were presented in the form of odd’s ratio (OR), whereas continuous data were in the form of weighted mean difference (WMD). The included articles reported at least one of the following outcomes: intra-abdominal abscess (IAA), wound infection, operative time, hospital stay and complications. RESULTS: Three randomised control trials (198 LA cases vs. 205 OA cases) and 12 case − control trials (914 LA cases vs. 2192 OA cases) were included. This analysis revealed that although the IAA formation rate was similar in the LA and OA groups (OR: 1.28, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.87–1.88), the wound infection rate was lower in the LA group (OR: 0.38, 95% CI: 0.28–0.51). Furthermore, LA was associated with shorter hospital stay (WMD: −1.43 days, 95% CI: −2.33–−0.52) and fewer complications than OA (OR: 0.40, 95% CI: 0.28–0.57). CONCLUSION: LA has significant benefits in treating PA and is associated with better post-operative outcomes such as shorter hospital stay, lower incidence of wound infection and other complications. However, more studies with randomised and large-sample populations are still required to determine the clinical benefit of LA in treating PA.