Meta analysis of effect of hypothermia plasma ablation on tonsillectomy

Objective To compare the clinical efficacy and safety of argon plasma coagulation (APC) tonsillectomy and conventional tonsillectomy. Methods Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) about APC tonsillectomy from 2000 to 2013 were collected by searching databases such as PubMed, EMbase, Wanfang Data and China Hownet. Then RCTs were evaluated based on the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, and meta-analysis was completed by Review Manager 5.1. Results Fourteen essays were enrolled in this research which included totally 1 240 cases. Of the 1 240 cases, 607 cases were in observation group (argon plasma coagulation tonsillectomy) and 633 cases were in control group (conventional tonsillectomy). The results of meta-analysis revealed that the intraoperative blood loss of observation group was significantly lower than that of control group Md= -2.36, 95% CI (-2.56 - -2.17), P< 0.001, the operation time of observation group was significantly shorter than that of control group Md= -2.16, 95% CI (-2.33 - -1.99), P< 0.001. However, there was no significant difference between the two groups about postoperative hemorrhage Md= 0.54, 95% CI (0.25 - 1.17), P> 0.05. Conclusion Clinical efficacy of APC tonsillectomy is better than conventional tonsillectomy, and the intraoperative blood loss between the two groups is of no significant difference.