. 2005 Mar 8;5:3. doi: 10.1186/1471-2482-5-3

Table 2.

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion criteria	Exclusion criteria
• Age equal or greater than 18 years • Expected survival time more than 12 months • Patients undergoing primary and elective median laparotomy (patients with prior laparoscopy or abdominal operation via paramedian incision (e.g. appendectomy) may be included in the trial) • BMI < 35 • Expected length of incision > 15 cm • Patient must be able to give informed consent • Patient has given informed consent	• Peritonitis • Emergency surgery • Participation in another intervention-trial with interference of intervention and outcome of this study • Coagulopathy A group of disorders of the blood clotting (coagulation) system in which bleeding is prolonged and excessive with abnormal values in the blood laboratory. • Severe psychiatric or neurologic diseases • Lack of compliance • Drug- and/or alcohol-abuse according to local standards • Current immunosuppressive therapy (more than 40 mg of a corticoid per day or azathioprin) • Chemotherapy within 2 weeks before operation • Radiotherapy of the abdomen completed longer than 8 weeks before operation • Inability to follow the instructions given by the investigator or the telephone interviewer (insufficient command of language, dementia, lack of time) • Lack of informed consent

Inclusion criteria

Exclusion criteria

• Age equal or greater than 18 years
• Expected survival time more than 12 months
• Patients undergoing primary and elective median laparotomy (patients with prior laparoscopy or abdominal operation via paramedian incision (e.g. appendectomy) may be included in the trial)
• BMI < 35
• Expected length of incision > 15 cm
• Patient must be able to give informed consent
• Patient has given informed consent

• Peritonitis
• Emergency surgery
• Participation in another intervention-trial with interference of intervention and outcome of this study
• Coagulopathy
A group of disorders of the blood clotting (coagulation) system in which bleeding is prolonged and excessive with abnormal values in the blood laboratory.
• Severe psychiatric or neurologic diseases
• Lack of compliance
• Drug- and/or alcohol-abuse according to local standards
• Current immunosuppressive therapy (more than 40 mg of a corticoid per day or azathioprin)
• Chemotherapy within 2 weeks before operation
• Radiotherapy of the abdomen completed longer than 8 weeks before operation
• Inability to follow the instructions given by the investigator or the telephone interviewer (insufficient command of language, dementia, lack of time)
• Lack of informed consent