SynthesisInternational wound journal2026
Duration of Wound Coverage for the Prevention of Surgical Site Infections After Surgery: A Systematic Review of Current Evidence With Meta-Analysis of Randomised Controlled Trials.
Synthesis in International wound journal, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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.
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
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
This systematic review aimed to identify the published evidence on the length of time surgical wounds should be covered with dressings after surgery to prevent surgical site infections (SSI). MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL and CENTRAL were searched in August 2025 for RCTs comparing the effects of different lengths of time wounds are covered after surgery on SSI at specified time points. Sixteen RCTs met the inclusion criteria. Duration of dressing and patient population varied across studies. The SSI rate was higher in groups with longer dressing duration in nine studies, higher in the shorter duration group in three studies and equivalent between groups in one study. Two studies reported no SSIs, and one study reported a composite outcome. Meta-analysis of results showed no significant difference in the development of SSI between the shorter and longer dressing duration groups (RR 0.84, 95% CI: 0.57, 1.22, p = 0.33). The GRADE assessment of evidence was very low. Studies were heterogeneous in terms of patient population, type of surgery and dressing duration. Our findings add to the evidence showing that shorter and longer dressing durations are comparable in terms of SSI risk. Future research should prioritise well-powered RCTs examining standardised dressing durations and follow-up, with stratification by wound characteristics and dressing material.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
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.