The Effect of Omentoplasty on the Rate of Anastomotic Leakage after Intestinal Resection: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Anastomotic leakage is a major postoperative complication after intestinal surgery leading to increased risk of morbidity and mortality. Omentoplasty has been evaluated to prevent anastomotic leakage in several studies. However, there is no consensus regarding whether or not omentoplasty should be used to decrease the rate of anastomotic leakage after intestinal resection. A prospective, randomized study was conducted to evaluate the influence of omentoplasty on anastomotic leakage after intestinal resection. A total of 124 patients who underwent intestinal resection were enrolled in this prospective study. Patients were randomly assigned to receive either the omentoplasty or nonomentoplasty. In the omentoplasty group, the omentum was wrapped around the anastomotic region. Age, gender, site and type of anastomosis, duration of hospital stay, and performance of omentoplasty were recorded. This study was registered in Iranian Registry of clinical trial (number: IRCT201412316925N3). The rate of anastomotic leakage was significantly lower in the omentoplasty group (P = 0.04). Patients in the omentoplasty group developed a significantly lower rate of postoperative infection and peritonitis (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference of abscess and fistula formation between the two groups (P > 0.05). The length of hospital stay was longer in the nonomentoplasty group, compared with that for omentoplasty patients (P < 0.05). No death occurred in the omentoplasty subjects, while six nonomentoplasty patients died (P < 0.05). Our data demonstrated that omentoplasty is useful to lower the rate of postoperative complications in patients underwent intestinal surgery.