Annals of Coloproctology

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Original Article

Anorectal benign disease

Immediate sphincter repair following fistulotomy for anal fistula: does it impact the healing rate and septic complications?: Maher A. Abbas, Anna T. Tsay, Mohammad Abbass; Ann Coloproctol. 2024;40(3):217-224. Published online June 28, 2024; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3393/ac.2022.01144.0163

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Purpose
Fistulotomy is considered the most effective treatment for anal fistula; however, it carries a risk of incontinence. Sphincteroplasty in the setting of fistulotomy is not standard practice due to concerns regarding healing and potential infectious complications. We aimed to compare the outcomes of patients who underwent fistulotomy with primary sphincteroplasty to those who did not undergo repair.
Methods
This was a retrospective review of consecutive patients who underwent fistulotomy for cryptoglandular anal fistula. All operations were performed by one colorectal surgeon. Sphincteroplasty was performed for patients perceived to be at higher risk for continence disturbance. The main outcome measures were the healing rate and postoperative septic complications.
Results
In total, 152 patients were analyzed. Group A (fistulotomy with sphincteroplasty) consisted of 45 patients and group B (fistulotomy alone) included 107 patients. Both groups were similar in age (P=0.16) and sex (P=0.20). Group A had higher proportions of multiple fistulas (26.7% vs. 6.5%, P<0.01) and complex fistulas (mid to high transsphincteric, 37.8% vs. 10.3%; P<0.01) than group B. The median follow-up time was 8 weeks. The overall healing rate was similar in both groups (93.3% vs. 90.6%, P=0.76). No significant difference between the 2 groups was noted in septic complications (6.7% vs. 3.7%, P=0.42).
Conclusion
Fistulotomy with primary sphincter repair demonstrated a comparable healing rate to fistulotomy alone, without an increased risk of postoperative septic complications. Further prospective randomized studies are needed to confirm these findings and to explore the functional outcomes of patients who undergo sphincteroplasty.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

Is Primary Opening of Fistula-in-Ano Always at Dentate Line: Correlation Between MRI and Operative Findings in 379 Patients
Pankaj Garg, Gabriele Naldini, Vincent De Parades, Petr Tsarkov, Vipul Yagnik, Kaushik Bhattacharya, Baljit Kaur, G Mahak
Clinical and Experimental Gastroenterology.2025; Volume 18: 121. CrossRef
Clinical outcome of fistulectomy with partial sphincter preservation in complex fistula-in-ano in a tertiary hospital of Bangladesh
Jalal Ahmed, M. Meher Ullah, Asif Aman, Satya Ranjan Mondal, Sabrina Akhter Qurashi, Golam Mustafa, Ahsan Habib, Imtiaz Faruk
International Surgery Journal.2025; 12(7): 1131. CrossRef
Sequential Surgical Management of a Recurrent Complex Transsphincteric Anal Fistula With Sphincter Disruption: A Case Report
Diego Pérez-Valdez, Alfredo Sinahi Abarca-Magallón, Samuel Hernández-Alvarado, Daniel Castañeda-Rodríguez, Daniel Alejandro Valdivieso-Siguenza
Cureus.2025;[Epub] CrossRef
Achieving a high cure rate in complex anal fistulas: understanding the conceptual role of the Garg cardinal principles
Pankaj Garg, Nicola Clemente, James C. W. Khaw
Annals of Coloproctology.2024; 40(5): 521. CrossRef

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