{
  "abstract": "Purpose\n\nNatural orifice specimen extraction (NOSE) eliminates the abdominal extraction incision after minimally invasive (MIS) colorectal resection and offers favourable short-term recovery, but transanal extraction raises concerns regarding sphincter stretch and anorectal dysfunction. This review evaluated anorectal functional outcomes after transanal NOSE compared with transabdominal specimen extraction (TASE) in MIS colorectal cancer surgery.Methods\n\nMEDLINE and EMBASE were searched from inception to August 2024 for comparative studies reporting postoperative anorectal or pelvic floor functional outcomes following transanal NOSE versus TASE. The primary outcome was anorectal continence at the postoperative interval closest to 6 months.Results\n\nTen retrospective cohort studies were included, of which seven (1362 patients) contributed quantitative data for meta-analysis. Three studies contributed to the pooled Wexner incontinence score analysis and four to the pooled Pelvic Floor Distress Inventory short form (PFDI-20) analysis. At the interval closest to 6 months, Wexner scores were numerically higher after transanal NOSE than TASE, but the difference was small and non-significant (MD 0.17, 95% CI - 0.01 to 0.35; p = 0.07). PFDI-20 scores did not differ between groups (MD - 0.02, 95% CI - 0.21 to 0.18; p = 0.86). Both estimates were robust in leave-one-out and overlap-adjusted analyses excluding potentially overlapping Harbin Medical University cohorts. Early differences appeared to diminish over time, with no clear separation beyond 12 months.Conclusion\n\nTransanal NOSE was associated with a small, non-significant trend toward higher early Wexner scores after MIS colorectal cancer surgery, while broader pelvic floor symptom burden appeared comparable to TASE. The difference was of uncertain clinical significance, was robust to sensitivity analyses, and longer-term data suggested no persistent functional disadvantage.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Colorectal Surgery, Singapore General Hospital, Outram Road, Singapore, 169608, Singapore.",
    "Internal Medicine Residency, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore, 169608, Singapore.",
    "Department of Colorectal Surgery, Singapore General Hospital, Outram Road, Singapore, 169608, Singapore. isaac.seow.en@gmail.com."
  ],
  "article_type": "systematic review",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 5,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Megan Wern Ee Chua"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Ashley Shi Hui Lee"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Prasad Palanisamy"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Ian Jun Yan Wee"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Isaac Seow-En",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-8287-6812"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/0jtrheawrq7f2.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1007/s00423-026-04184-2",
  "fulltext_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13727840",
  "id": "0jtrheawrq7f2",
  "issns": [
    "1435-2443",
    "1435-2451"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42972089",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Systematic Review"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2730|Colorectal Cancer Surgical Treatments"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7172533124",
  "pdf_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13727840?pdf=render",
  "pmcid": "PMC13727840",
  "pmid": "42972089",
  "published": "2026-08-05",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/0jtrheawrq7f2.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-04T15:20:49Z",
      "native_id": "MED:42972089",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42972089"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-06T12:23:38Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13727840",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1007/s00423-026-04184-2"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:2730|Colorectal Cancer Surgical Treatments",
      "subfield": "oncology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Anorectal function after transanal natural orifice specimen extraction for colorectal cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.",
  "title_text": "Anorectal function after transanal natural orifice specimen extraction for colorectal cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-07T12:20:57Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/0jtrheawrq7f2",
  "venue": "Langenbeck's archives of surgery",
  "versions": []
}