SynthesisMedicine2018
Are closed suction drains necessary for primary total knee arthroplasty?: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Medicine, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
20 citing papers in PubMed, 42 citations in OpenAlex.
- Drain versus no-drain at the donor sites of iliac crest bone graft: a retrospective study.Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research · 2024Trial
- Systemic iodine levels increase with povidone-iodine irrigation, but does this affect thyroid functions? A case-control study.Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research · 2024Trial
- The effect of local injection of tranexamic acid into peri-articular tissue versus drain clamping in total knee arthroplasty: a randomized controlled trial.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2022Trial
- Closed suction drainage following routine primary total joint arthroplasty is associated with a higher transfusion rate and longer postoperative length of stay: a retrospective cohort study.Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research · 2019Trial
- Role of Suction Drain after Knee Arthroplasty in the Tranexamic Acid Era: A Randomized Controlled Study.Clinics in orthopedic surgery · 2019Trial
- Recommendations of an international Delphi study group for total knee arthroplasty in obese patients.Archives of orthopaedic and trauma surgery · 2026Article
- Optimizing Early Recovery Quality in Same-Day Discharge Total Hip Arthroplasty: A Narrative Review.Clinical interventions in aging · 2026Review
- Blood loss, complications, and the role of suction drains in shoulder arthroplasty: a systematic review and meta-analysis.JSES international · 2025Review
- Driving Forces for Outpatient Total Hip and Knee Arthroplasty with Enhanced Recovery After Surgery Protocols: A Narrative Review.Current pain and headache reports · 2024Review
- Drain versus no drain after total ankle arthroplasty: are there any differences in complications rate?Archives of orthopaedic and trauma surgery · 2024Article
- Key Elements of Enhanced Recovery after Total Joint Arthroplasty: A Reanalysis of the Enhanced Recovery after Surgery Guidelines.Orthopaedic surgery · 2023Review
- Article
- Operative Techniques to Reduce Hip and Knee Arthroplasty Complications in Morbidly Obese Patients.Arthroplasty today · 2022Article
- Outcomes of an Institutional Rapid Recovery Protocol for Total Joint Arthroplasty at a Safety Net Hospital.Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. Global research & reviews · 2022Article
- The usage of drainage after primary total hip or knee arthroplasty: best evidence selection and risk of bias considerations.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2021Review
- Developing an enhanced recovery after surgery program for oncology patients who undergo hip or knee reconstruction surgery.World journal of orthopedics · 2021Review
- Consensus statement for perioperative care in total hip replacement and total knee replacement surgery: Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERASActa orthopaedica · 2020Review
- A nested case-control study on the risk factors of deep vein thrombosis for Chinese after total joint arthroplasty.Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research · 2019Article
- Do tourniquet and drainage influence fast track in total knee arthroplasty? Our results on 151 cases.Acta bio-medica : Atenei Parmensis · 2019Article
- Anaphylactic shock due to intra-articular injection of diclofenac etalhyaluronate sodium: A case report.Acute medicine & surgeryArticle
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundPlacement of closed suction drains after total knee arthroplasty is an age-old practice; however, benefits and disadvantages of this procedure remain disputable in various studies.
methodsWe performed an electronic database search in Medline/PubMed, the Cochrane Library, and Embase to retrieve publications with respect to this issue and then screened reference lists of related articles manually to obtain any additional ones. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating the use of closed suction drains after primary total knee arthroplasty were eligible for this study. Useful data were extracted to calculate the pooled risk ratios (RRs) or weighted mean differences (WMDs) as well as corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) as summary estimates.
resultsNineteen RCTs were included in the quantitative analysis. Compared with patients in the nondrainage group, those in the drainage group were significantly correlated with a decreased need of dressing change (RR = 0.31, 95% CI 0.12 to 0.79, P = .015) but an increased risk of homologous transfusion (RR = 1.38, 95% CI: 1.04-1.83) and longer time to regain straight-leg raising (WMD = 0.97 d, 95% CI: 0.48-1.46). Two groups showed no significant difference in total blood loss, hemoglobin drop, superficial wound infection, prosthetic joint infection, formation of deep vein thrombosis, duration of hospital stay, and range of movement.
conclusionsBased on this analysis, the use of closed suction drains after total knee arthroplasty is probably not superior to no drains for most outcome measures and therefore surgeons may wish to reconsider the routine use of this empirical practice until there is further evidence.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.