Bowel Lengthening Procedures in Children with Short Bowel Syndrome: A Systematic Review

This systematic review compares two surgical bowel lengthening techniques (LILT and STEP) in 782 pediatric short bowel syndrome patients. Both procedures showed similar parenteral nutrition weaning rates (46-52%), though STEP had lower mortality (7% vs 26%). The authors conclude that poor quality reporting and heterogeneous outcomes prevent clear patient selection guidance, highlighting the need for standardized prospective data collection.