Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34491460›Full record

SynthesisHernia : the journal of hernias and abdominal wall surgery2021

Transversus abdominis release (TAR) for ventral hernia repair: open or robotic? Short-term outcomes from a systematic review with meta-analysis.

U Bracale, F Corcione, D Neola, S Castiglioni, G Cavallaro, C Stabilini, E Botteri, M Sodo, N Imperatore, R Peltrini

Abstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Hernia : the journal of hernias and abdominal wall surgery, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 53 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
53citing papers in PubMed, 5 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

53 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Pooled it
  4. Pooled it
  5. Pooled it
  6. Trial
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Article
  11. Article
  12. Article
  13. Time distribution and intraoperative workflow in complex midline incisional hernia repair.Hernia : the journal of hernias and abdominal wall surgery · 2026
    Observational
  14. Article
  15. Article
  16. Article
  17. Article
  18. Article
  19. Robot ventral hernia repair in class II-IV obesity: early and mid-term results.Hernia : the journal of hernias and abdominal wall surgery · 2025
    Article
  20. Follow-up of complex hernia repair with intraoperative fascial traction.Hernia : the journal of hernias and abdominal wall surgery · 2025
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

U BracaleDepartment of General and Specialistic Surgeries, Federico II University Hospital, Naples, Italy.
F CorcioneDepartment of General and Specialistic Surgeries, Federico II University Hospital, Naples, Italy.
D NeolaDepartment of General and Specialistic Surgeries, Federico II University Hospital, Naples, Italy.
S CastiglioniDepartment of General and Specialistic Surgeries, Federico II University Hospital, Naples, Italy.
G CavallaroDepartment of Surgery "P. Valdoni", University of Rome "La Sapienza", Rome, Italy.
C StabiliniDepartment of Surgical Sciences, University of Genoa, Policlinico San Martino IRCCS, Genoa, Italy.
E BotteriGeneral Surgery, ASST Spedali Civili Di Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
M SodoDepartment of Public Health, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy.
N ImperatoreDepartment of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy.
R PeltriniDepartment of General and Specialistic Surgeries, Federico II University Hospital, Naples, Italy. roberto.peltrini@gmail.com.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeTo compare early postoperative outcomes after transversus abdominis release (TAR) for ventral hernia repair with open (oTAR) and robotic (rTAR) approach.

methodsA systematic search of PubMed/MEDLINE, EMBASE, SCOPUS and Web of Science databases was conducted to identify comparative studies until October 2020. A meta-analysis of postoperative short-term outcomes was performed including complications rate, operative time, length of stay, surgical site infection (SSI), surgical site occurrence (SSO), SSO requiring intervention (SSOPI), systemic complications, readmission, and reoperation rates as measure outcomes.

resultsSix retrospective studies were included in the analysis with a total of 831 patients who underwent rTAR (n = 237) and oTAR (n = 594). Robotic TAR was associated with lower risk of complications rate (9.3 vs 20.7%, OR 0.358, 95% CI 0.218-0.589, p < 0.001), lower risk of developing SSO (5.3 vs 11.5%, OR 0.669, 95% CI 0.307-1.458, p = 0.02), lower risk of developing systemic complications (6.3 vs 26.5%, OR 0.208, 95% CI 0.100-0.433, p < 0.001), shorter hospital stay (SMD - 4.409, 95% CI - 6.000 to - 2.818, p < 0.001) but longer operative time (SMD 53.115, 95% CI 30.236-75.993, p < 0.01) compared with oTAR. There was no statistically significant difference in terms of SSI, SSOPI, readmission, and reoperation rates.

conclusionRobotic TAR improves recovery by adding the benefits of minimally invasive procedures when compared to open surgery. Although postoperative complications appear to decrease with a robotic approach, further studies are needed to support the real long-term and cost-effective advantages.

Indexed as

Hernia, VentralRobotic Surgical ProceduresAbdominal MusclesHerniorrhaphyHumansRetrospective StudiesSurgical Wound InfectionRobotic TARTransversus abdominis releaseVentral hernia repair

Identifiers

PMID34491460
PMCPMC8613152

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.