Efficacy and safety of ligation of intersphincteric fistula tract in the treatment of anal fistula: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Anal fistula is characterized with perianal cellulitis, anorectal pain, smelly or bloody drainage of pus, and difficulty in controlling bowel movements. Ligation of intersphincteric fistula tract (LIFT) technique is a recently developed approach against anal fistula, and it could alleviate the pain of the patient, with little postoperative trauma, which can greatly shorten the wound healing time and hospitalization stay. We conduct the meta-analysis and systematic review to systematically evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of LIFT in the treatment of anal fistula. METHODS: Randomized controlled trials of LIFT against anal fistula will be searched in several Chinese and English databases. Two reviewers will independently conduct the literature extraction and risk of bias assessment. Statistical analysis will be conducted in RevMan 5.3. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The study will help to systematically evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of LIFT in the treatment of anal fistula. OSF REGISTRATION NUMBER: DOI 10.17605/OSF.IO/T4FUH