The effect of negative pressure wound therapy after excision of a pilonidal sinus: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Introduction. Patients who have undergone surgery for a pilonidal cyst, in the majority, belong to a young, able-bodied category of the population, and it takes a long time for the wound to heal, which significantly affects the economic aspect of treatment and quality of life of patients. The use of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) after excision of the pilonidal cyst may shorten the duration of disability, decrease the length of postoperative hospital stay, reduce the cost of treatment, and ensuring the speedy return of patients to their usual lifestyle.Materials and methods of research. The systematic review was conducted in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. The literature search was carried out in PubMed and eLibrary databases.Results. The meta-analysis included 6 studies (151 patients who underwent negative pressure wound therapy after excision of the pilonidal cyst and 150 patients who underwent local conservative therapy). Statistically significant differences were found in the reduction of the time of wound healing after the pilonidal cyst excision. The wound healing time after excision was significantly lower (M = 15 days; p