Routine Abdominal Drain Not Recommended After Laparoscopic Appendectomy for Perforated Appendicitis: Study

What this really means is that placing an abdominal drain routinely in cases of perforated appendicitis undergoing laparoscopic surgery may be unnecessary and potentially burdensome without improving outcomes. The added operative time, prolonged antibiotic exposure, and extended hospital stay raise concerns about increased costs and potential risks without clear infection prevention benefit. But the authors rightly caution that their work is retrospective and single center, and that patient populations with greater severity of infection may respond differently. They call for prospective, multicenter randomized studies to validate whether omitting drainage is safe and effective across broader clinical settings. Published in BMC Surgery, this study reinforces a growing movement against routine drainage in minimally invasive appendiceal surgery.

Keywords: Abdominal drain, Laparoscopic appendectomy, Perforated appendicitis, Propensity score matching, Surgical site infection, BMC Surgery, Hao Lu, Drain placement, Postoperative outcomes

Reference:

Lu, H., Li, S., Zhang, D., Wang, S., Liu, H., Wang, C., & Peng, H. (2025). Effect of abdominal drain on surgical site infection undergoing laparoscopic appendectomy for perforated appendicitis in adults: a propensity score matching analysis. BMC Surgery, 25, Article 470.