Current Use of Equine Laparoscopy in Urogenital Disorders: A Scoping Review of the Literature from 2000 to 2021

Abstract

(1) Background: Laparoscopic surgery replaced traditional invasive techniques for the treatment of common urogenital disorders in equids. The aim of this review is to evaluate applications and the development of urogenital laparoscopy from 2001 to 2021. (2) Methods: A scoping review of literature was undertaken according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines for scoping reviews on three databases (NCBI-PubMed, Web of Science-Thompson Reuters, and SciVerse Scopus). (3) Results: A total of 452 papers were identified. After duplicate removal and title screening, 181 papers underwent abstract screening. Of these, 160 + 10 papers (cited by others) were assessed for eligibility according to the PICOs. A total of 132 papers were considered eligible. Most of the research was focused on ovaries and testes, followed by urinary bladder and general articles about laparoscopy in horses. We identified 43 original studies (33%, RCT, NoRCT, and experimental trials), 39 case series/retrospective studies (29%), 37 case reports (28%), and 13 reviews (10%, narrative or systematic). (4) Conclusions: Gonadal disorders were the most investigated. Hand-Assisted Laparoscopic Surgery (HALS) and laparoscopic-assisted surgery represent valuable options for more challenging conditions (uterine and urinary bladder disorders).

Keywords: donkey; horse; laparoscopy; mule; surgery; urogenital disorders.

Figure 1

Flow diagram of the search strategy for a scoping review in equine urogenital laparoscopy. Number of publications that were reviewed and excluded during each step of the review process.

Figure 2

Pie chart showing publication type for 132 citations included in a scoping review (1: original studies 33%; 2: case series/retrospective studies 29%, 3: case reports 28%; 4: reviews 10%).

Figure 3

Pie chart showing the distribution of the 132 citations included in a scoping review, categorized according to the target organ/structure (1: ovaries 32%, 2: uterus 7%, 3: ovaries-uterus 4%, 4: urinary bladder 11%, 5: inguinal rings 7%, 6: testes 23%, 7: general information about laparoscopy 8%, 8: kidney 4%, 9: uterine tubes 3%, and 10: ductus deferens 1%).

Figure 4

Horizontal bar chart showing the publication type for 132 citations included in a scoping review, categorized according to the target organ/structure and expressed as a percentage (%).