Laparoscopic versus open herniorrhaphy for children with inguinal hernia: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness between laparoscopic herniorrhaphy (LH) and open herniorrhaphy (OH) in children with inguinal hernia. METHODS: PubMed, EmBase, and the Cochrane library were searched to select trials from their inception till April 2019. The summary of relative risks (RRs) and weighted mean differences (WMDs) with corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were employed to evaluate the treatment effectiveness between LH and OH. RESULTS: Six randomized controlled trials (RCTs) including a total of 594 children were selected. No significant differences were observed between LH and OH regarding the risk of postoperative complications. However, LH significantly reduced the risk of major postoperative complications when compared with OH. Moreover, LH showed association with a shorter operative time in bilateral inguinal hernia when compared with OH, whereas no significant difference between groups for unilateral inguinal hernia. Finally, children who received LH showed association with longer time to discharge than those who received OH, whereas no significant difference was observed between the groups for time to resume full activity. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggested that children who received LH had protection against major postoperative complications than those who received OH. Moreover, children who received LH had shorter operative time, and longer time to discharge.