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CompletedNCT07531576Updated Apr 15, 2026

Outcome of Primary vs Delayed Primary Closure of Laparotomy in Dirty Abdominal Wounds

An interventional study of Delayed Primary Laparotomy wound Closure and Primary Abdominal Closure in Peritonitis, Primary Closure and Delayed Primary Closure, sponsored by Ayub Teaching Hospital. Completed at 1 site in Pakistan. Open to participants aged 15 Years to 80 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-04-15.

Sponsored by Ayub Teaching Hospital · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment

From the registry’s dates

  • Registered 5 years 1 month after the study started (first participant enrolled Feb 2021, registered Apr 2026).
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
78
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
15 Years to 80 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

This randomized controlled trial is designed to evaluate and compare two different wound management strategies-primary closure (PC) and delayed primary closure (DPC)-in patients undergoing emergency laparotomy for peritonitis

  • The primary objective is to determine which technique more effectively reduces postoperative complications, specifically surgical site infections (SSI) and wound dehiscence (burst abdomen), while also assessing the impact on the length of hospital stay (LOS)

The study includes 78 patients aged 15 to 80 years with free intraperitoneal contamination

  • In the PC group, the abdominal wound is closed immediately following the procedure
  • In the DPC group, the skin and subcutaneous tissues are initially left open to allow for drainage and are washed twice weekly until the wound is free of contamination (pus, fecal matter, bile, or blood), at which point it is closed using tension sutures
  • This study aims to provide clinical evidence on whether the biological benefits of DPC-such as reduced bacterial colonization and improved drainage-outweigh the potential drawbacks of the technique, such as patient discomfort or prolonged care
02

Conditions studied

  • Peritonitis
  • Primary Closure
  • Delayed Primary Closure

Keywords

  • Visceral Perforation
  • Contaminated Abdominal Wounds
  • Emergency Laparotomy
  • Surgical Site Infection
  • Dirty abdominal wound
  • Burst abdomen
03

In context

Peritonitis

167 studies on the registry are indexed under Peritonitis; 23 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 78 is close to the median of 79 across 106 interventional studies indexed under Peritonitis.

Browse Peritonitis studies →

Lead sponsor

Ayub Teaching Hospital is the lead sponsor of 8 studies on the registry; none are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
15 Years to 80 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

To be included in the study, patients had to meet all of the following requirements:

Free intraperitoneal contamination resulting from the perforation of any hollow viscus, abdominal trauma, or firearm injuries

. Both genders were eligible for participation

. Participants had to fall within the age group of 15 to 80 years

Exclusion criteria

. Exclusion Criteria

Patients meeting any of the following conditions were excluded from the trial to ensure the integrity of the results and control for confounding variables:

Age: Anyone younger than 15 years of age

. Pregnancy: All pregnant women were excluded

. Type of Surgery: Patients undergoing elective (scheduled) laparotomy rather than emergency procedures

. Medication: Any patient currently using for any medical issue

.

Specific Medical Conditions:

Peritonitis caused specifically by pancreatitis . Diabetes mellitus, which was excluded to regulate factors that interfere with wound healing . Individuals with compromised immune systems

. These criteria were established to limit the progression of infection and specifically evaluate the impact of the wound closure technique-primary closure versus delayed primary closure-without the interference of significant comorbidities or external factors like malnutrition and immune suppression

.

Terms in these criteria, in plain language(1)

Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.

Corticosteroids (steroids)

Anti-inflammatory medicines such as prednisone, prednisolone and dexamethasone — not the anabolic steroids used for muscle.

Studies differ in what they allow: check which steroid medicines, routes (tablets, injections, creams, inhalers, eye drops) and doses this study accepts.

05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
78 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Delayed Primary Laparotomy wound Closure

    Procedure: Delayed Primary Laparotomy wound Closure · Procedure: Primary Abdominal Closure

  • Active comparator
    Primary Abdominal Closure

    Procedure: Delayed Primary Laparotomy wound Closure · Procedure: Primary Abdominal Closure

Interventions

  • ProcedureDelayed Primary Laparotomy wound Closure

    This technique involves leaving the skin and subcutaneous tissues open for several days following the initial surgery

  • ProcedurePrimary Abdominal Closure

    In this intervention, the skin and subcutaneous tissues are closed immediately following the completion of the emergency laparotomy

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Frequency of Burst Abdomen

    This measure tracks the incidence of abdominal wall separation or wound dehiscence following emergency laparotomy ,

    Time frame: 14 days follow up period

07

Study locations

1 site
  • Ayub Teaching Hospitql
    Abbottabad, KPK 22010, Pakistan
08

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reachedSimilar studies: half by the dot; the band is the middle halfHalf of similar studies reached it by the dot; the band is the middle half, from a quarter to three quarters

Ran from Feb 2021 to primary completion in Jun 2021, 4 months.

Of 23 interventional studies with no phase under Peritonitis, half reached primary completion within 31 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 12 and three quarters within 44. This study's 4 months is below that.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Apr 9, 2026
First posted
Apr 15, 2026
StartActual
Feb 17, 2021
Primary completionActual
Jun 21, 2021
CompletionActual
Jun 21, 2021
Last update
Apr 15, 2026
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Apr 15, 2026, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
09

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT07531576
Lead sponsor
Ayub Teaching Hospital
Responsible party
MZHaroon (Dr., Ayub Teaching Hospital) — Principal investigator
First posted
Apr 15, 2026
Start date
Feb 17, 2021
Primary completion
Jun 21, 2021
Completion
Jun 21, 2021
Last update
Apr 15, 2026

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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This study is completed, as verified in Apr 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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