Publication Name	World Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery
Manuscript ID	123355
DOI	10.4240/wjgs.123355
Country	China

Category	Surgery
Manuscript Type	Meta-Analysis
Article Title	Preventive drainage and anastomotic leakage after colorectal surgery
Manuscript Source	Unsolicited Manuscript
All Author List	Xia-Ling Shi, Long-Sheng Cai, Ling-Jie Zhang and Li Zhang
Funding Agency and Grant Number
Corresponding Author	Li Zhang, Department of Colorectal Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, No. 111 Dade Road, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou 510120, Guangdong Province, China. tension1000@126.com
Key Words	Colorectal surgery; Anastomotic leakage; Prophylactic drainage; Transanal drainage tube; Pelvic drainage
Core Tip	This meta-analysis evaluated whether preventive drainage reduces anastomotic leakage after colorectal surgery and stratified outcomes by drainage modality. Thirty-six studies comprising 17690 patients were included. The overall reduction in leakage risk was primarily driven by transanal drainage. Pelvic drainage and other drainage methods showed no statistically significant preventive effect. These findings suggest that preventive drainage should not be considered a uniform strategy, and that the choice of modality should be based on drainage modality, anastomotic level, operative setting, and patient risk.
Citation	Shi XL, Cai LS, Zhang JL, Zhang L. Preventive drainage and anastomotic leakage after colorectal surgery. World J Gastrointest Surg 2026; In press DOI: https://doi.org/10.4240/wjgs.123355
PDF	123355-in-press.pdf

Received	2026-05-18 08:03
Peer-Review Started	2026-05-18 08:04
First Decision by Editorial Office Director
Return for Revision	2026-06-17 14:23
Revised	2026-06-30 17:30
Publication Fee Transferred	2026-07-10 06:20
Second Decision by Editor	2026-07-31 02:50
Second Decision by Editor-in-Chief
Final Decision by Editorial Office Director	2026-07-31 10:35
Articles in Press	2026-07-31 10:35
Edit the Manuscript by Language Editor
Typeset the Manuscript

ISSN	1948-9366 (online)
Open Access	©Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2026. No commercial re-use. See Permissions. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc.
Copyright	©Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2026. No commercial re-use. See Permissions. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc.
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