Zmora 2003.

Study characteristics
Methods	Study design: Parallel‐group randomised trials Duration of trial: July 1997 to July 2000 Duration of follow‐up: 30 days Country of origin: Israel
Participants	Baseline characteristics Number randomised: 415 participants Number analysed: 380 participants Intervention: MBP+oAB Number of participants [n]: 187 Age [years; mean (range)]: 68 (22–89) Gender [male/female; n]: 103/84 Control: oAB Number of participants [n]: 193 Age [years, mean (range)]: 68 (23–92) Gender [male/female; n]: 94/99 Inclusion criteria  Quote: "Patients undergoing elective colon and rectal surgery with primary anastomosis" Exclusion criteria Quote: "Patients with tumors smaller than 2 cm were excluded from the study, as palpation of small tumors may be difficult in an unprepared bowel, and these patients may require intraoperative colonoscopy to identify these lesions. Patients who required a diverting stoma proximal to the anastomosis and those who were found to have an abdominal abscess at the time of surgery were also excluded from the data analysis." Baseline imbalances Quote:"Demographic characteristics, indications for surgery, and type of surgery did not significantly differ between the two groups."
Interventions	Comparison Intervention: MBP+oAB Control: oAB MBP Agent(s): polyethylene glycol (additional enema before rectal surgery) Dose per administration: one gallon Time(s) of intake: 12 to 16 hours before surgery (on the day of surgery) Route: oral,rectal Concomitant medications: ‐ oAB Agent(s): neomycin and erythromycin Dose per administration: ‐ Time(s) of intake: "three doses before surgery" Route: oral Concomitant medications: ‐ Perioperative intravenous antibiotic prophylaxis Agent(s): Quote: "Perioperative broad‐spectrum intravenous antibiotics" Dose per administration: ‐ Time(s) of intake:Quote:  "perioperative; continued for at least 24 hours postoperatively. Surgeons were allowed to continue the prophylactic intravenous antibiotics for more then 1 day, and the length of prophylactic treatment was recorded." Adherence to regimen: 193 Patient excluded since they did not have MBP
Outcomes	Outcomes sought in review and reported in trial SSI Anastomotic leakage Incidence of postoperative ileus Outcomes sought but not reported in trial Mortality Postoperative complications (mild D/C I + II or severe D/C III+IV) Length of hospital stay Side effects of Intervention(s) Outcomes reported in trial but not used in review Non‐surgical Infections GI bleeding Bowel cleansing assessment
Notes	Source of funding: ‐ Conflicts of interest: ‐ Ethics approval:  Quote:"The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board (Helsinki committee)" Informed consent:  Quote:Patients gave their informed consent before randomization." Clinical trials registration: ‐ Sample size calculation: ‐

D/C: Clavien‐Dindo classification; IV: intravenous; MBP: mechanical bowel preparation; MBP+oAB: combined mechanical and oral antibiotic bowel preparation; nMB: no bowel preparation; oAB: oral antibiotics as bowel preparation; PEG: polyethylene glycol; SD: standard deviation;  SSI: surgical site infection