Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41956522›Full record

SynthesisBMJ (Clinical research ed.)2026

Non-drug perioperative interventions to reduce postoperative pulmonary complications after abdominal surgery: systematic review and meta-analysis.

Chanyan Huang, Xu Zhao, Siyu Geng, Shujun Sun, Nada M Mousa, Haohan Xia, Xuanxian Xu, Jie Deng, Xiaolin Lu, Dan Xu and 8 more

Abstract readSystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
In one paragraph

Synthesis in BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–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

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

18 authors.

Chanyan HuangDepartment of Anaesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3155-5127
Xu ZhaoDepartment of Anaesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0007-3587-230X
Siyu GengDepartment of Anaesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
Shujun SunDepartment of Anaesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
Nada M MousaDepartment of Inflammation and Ageing, College of Medicine and Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0190-4023
Haohan XiaDepartment of Anaesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
Xuanxian XuDepartment of Anaesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
Jie DengDepartment of Anaesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
Xiaolin LuDepartment of Anaesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
Dan XuCurtin Medical School, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, Perth, Australia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6649-1111
Bingcheng ZhaoDepartment of Anaesthesiology, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5671-4999
Matthew LimCurtin Medical School, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, Perth, Australia.
Yi LiDepartment of Anaesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
William TangCurtin Medical School, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, Perth, Australia.
Xinran ChenDepartment of Anaesthesiology, The Affiliated Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, China.
Fang Gao SmithDepartment of Inflammation and Ageing, College of Medicine and Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK.
Ce TangInstitute of Precision Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1173-0688
Xia FengDepartment of Anaesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China fengxia@mail.sysu.edu.cn.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8182-9803

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveTo evaluate the effectiveness of perioperative non-drug interventions in reducing postoperative pulmonary complications (PPCs) in adults undergoing abdominal surgery.

designSystematic review and meta-analysis. DATA SOURCES: Ovid MEDLINE, Embase, and Web of Science from database inception to January 2025 and updated in January 2026, with no language restrictions. STUDY SELECTION: Randomised controlled trials assessing the effectiveness of perioperative non-drug interventions for the prevention of PPCs in adults undergoing elective abdominal surgery under general anaesthesia, with clearly defined PPCs.

main outcome measuresThe primary outcome was the proportion of patients developing PPCs. Secondary outcomes included the proportion of patients with PPC subtypes according to European Perioperative Clinical Outcome definitions (respiratory infection, respiratory failure, pleural effusion, atelectasis, or pneumothorax) and hospital length of stay. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Two reviewers independently screened studies, extracted data, and assessed risk of bias with the Cochrane RoB 2.0 tool. Data were synthesised using meta-analyses and trial sequential analyses, with the evidence certainty assessed using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach.

results255 trials including 55 260 participants were included, evaluating 10 types of interventions with 39 subtypes for PPC prevention. PPCs occurred in 6467 (11.7%) participants across all included trials. High certainty evidence showed that low fraction of inspired oxygen (FiO

conclusionsThis synthesis establishes an evidence hierarchy for PPC prevention in abdominal surgery. Low FiO STUDY REGISTRATION: PROSPERO CRD42025637449.

Indexed as

AbdomenLung DiseasesPerioperative CarePostoperative ComplicationsHumansRandomized Controlled Trials as Topic

Identifiers

PMID41956522
PMCPMC13063132

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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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.