Objective:

To prospectively analyze the effect of epidermal vacuum-assisted wound closure on lymphorrhea, complications, and reinterventions in patients undergoing inguinal lymphadenectomy for penile cancer, specifically measuring postoperative complications, lymphorrhea rates, and patient-reported outcomes.

Key Findings:

• Epidermal vacuum treatment significantly reduced complications such as lymphocele formation and persistent lymphorrhea compared to conventional care (p < 0.05).
• Reinterventions were less frequent in the VAC group (7%) compared to the CONV group (23%), although not statistically significant (p = 0.1).
• Patients reported higher satisfaction and lower pain levels with the VAC treatment (p < 0.05).

Interpretation:

Epidermal vacuum-assisted wound closure appears to be an effective method for reducing wound complications following inguinal lymphadenectomy in penile cancer patients, potentially improving patient outcomes and satisfaction.

Limitations:

• The study was limited to a specific patient population and may not be generalizable to all penile cancer patients, particularly those with different stages or types of cancer.
• The sample size was smaller than initially planned, which may affect the robustness of the findings and the ability to detect significant differences.

Conclusion:

Epidermal vacuum therapy is a promising approach to minimize wound complications in patients undergoing inguinal lymphadenectomy for penile cancer, warranting further investigation in larger cohorts to validate these findings.