Table 1 Baseline study characteristics of necrotizing soft tissue infection studies assessing surgical timing
| Eligible studies (n = 109) | Studies in meta-analyses (n = 33) | |
|---|---|---|
| Publication year, n (%) | ||
| 1989 and older | 8 (7) | 3 (9) |
| 1990–1999 | 7 (6) | 4 (12) |
| 2000–2009 | 29 (27) | 7 (21) |
| 2010–2019 | 65 (60) | 19 (58) |
| Continent where study was performeda, n (%) | ||
| Africa | 8 (7) | 0 (0) |
| Asia | 42 (39) | 14 (43) |
| Europe | 23 (21) | 7 (21) |
| North America | 32 (30) | 12 (36) |
| Oceania | 3 (3) | 0 (0) |
| South America | 0 (0) | 0 (0) |
| Type of studyb, n (%) | ||
| Retrospective cohort study | 89 (90) | 27 (93) |
| Prospective cohort study | 9 (9) | 2 (7) |
| Randomized controlled trial | 1 (1) | 0 (0) |
| Study period in years, median (IQR; range) | 7 (5–11; 2–24) | 6 (5–11; 2–16) |
| Number of participating medical institutionsa, median (IQR; range) | 1 (1–1; 1–6) | 1 (1–1; 1–2) |
| Number of included patients per study, median (IQR; range) | 35 (20–67; 5–472) | 33 (20–84; 9–472) |
| Body regions affected by NSTI assed per study, n (%) | ||
| Head and/or neck | 9 (8) | 1 (3) |
| Extremities | 8 (8) | 3 (9) |
| Trunk | 2 (2) | 1 (3) |
| Fournier | 32 (29) | 4 (12) |
| Full body | 58 (53) | 24 (73) |