Summary of findings 4. Monofilament versus multifilament sutures for laparotomy incisions.
| Monofilament versus multifilament sutures for laparotomy incisions | |||||
| Patient or population: patients undergoing a laparotomy incision Setting: community and hospital‐based, outpatient and inpatient, worldwide Intervention: monofilament Comparison: multifilament | |||||
| Outcomes | Anticipated absolute effects* (95% CI) | Relative effect (95% CI) | № of participants (studies) | Quality of the evidence (GRADE) | |
| Risk with multifilament | Risk with monofilament | ||||
| Incisional hernia follow‐up: 1 year | Study population | RR 0.76 (0.59 to 0.98) | 4520 (16 RCTs) | ⊕⊕⊕⊝ Moderate1 | |
| 105 per 1000 | 80 per 1000 (62 to 103) | ||||
| Wound infection at last follow‐up | Study population | RR 1.08 (0.91 to 1.28) | 6557 (23 RCTs) | ⊕⊕⊕⊝ Moderate1 | |
| 105 per 1000 | 114 per 1000 (96 to 135) | ||||
| Wound dehiscence at last follow‐up | Study population | RR 1.24 (0.93 to 1.67) | 6199 (22 RCTs) | ⊕⊕⊕⊝ Moderate1 | |
| 27 per 1000 | 33 per 1000 (25 to 45) | ||||
| Sinus or fistula formation at last follow‐up | Study population | RR 1.91 (0.77 to 4.73) | 2285 (8 RCTs) | ⊕⊝⊝⊝ Very low1,2,3 | |
| 25 per 1000 | 48 per 1000 (19 to 118) | ||||
| *The risk in the intervention group (and its 95% confidence interval) is based on the assumed risk in the comparison group and the relative effect of the intervention (and its 95% CI). CI: confidence interval; RCT: randomised controlled trial; RR: risk ratio | |||||
| GRADE Working Group grades of evidence High quality: we are very confident that the true effect lies close to that of the estimate of the effect Moderate quality: we are moderately confident in the effect estimate: the true effect is likely to be close to the estimate of the effect, but there is a possibility that it is substantially different Low quality: our confidence in the effect estimate is limited: the true effect may be substantially different from the estimate of the effect Very low quality: we have very little confidence in the effect estimate: The true effect is likely to be substantially different from the estimate of effect | |||||
1Downgraded one level for serious risk of bias (includes at least one study with overall high risk of bias). 2Downgraded one level for inconsistency (I2 = 77%). 3Downgraded one level for imprecision (overlapping no effect).