| Methods |
RCT, unblinded. |
| Participants |
120 participants, sex and age not reported. Unclear whether new or recurrence presentation. |
| Interventions |
Open healing vs. primary midline closure. |
| Outcomes |
Healing time, SSI, other complications, pain, RTW, recurrence, pain. |
| Notes |
96% follow up at 1 year. |
| Risk of bias |
| Bias |
Authors' judgement |
Support for judgement |
| Adequate sequence generation? |
Unclear risk |
Quote: "Method of treatment was decided by opening envelopes from a stack of 120 that had been randomised and closed but not sealed". |
| Allocation concealment? |
High risk |
|
| Incomplete outcome data addressed?
All outcomes |
Low risk |
Median of 4.2 years follow up, 113 returned a questionnaire investigating long term outcomes. the 7 that did not respond were contacted by a phone call. |
| Free of selective reporting? |
Low risk |
|
| Free of other bias? |
Unclear risk |
The study used questionnaires and phone calls to investigate long term clinical outcome (recurrence). Data by each method were not reported. |
