RESUMO
Objective To evaluate the use of stapling anterior resection for rectal cancer. Methods Data of 1036 patients undergoing anterior resection for rectal cancer during 1983 to 2000 were reviewed retrospectively. Clinical results were compared statistically between patients who received stapling anastomosis (group A, n=652) and those did not (group B, n=384). Results The annual average stapler anterior resection increased from 5 cases per year (during 1983-1987) to 147 cases per year (1998-2000). The 0? Ⅰ? Ⅱ stage patients accounted for 53% in group A, and 62% in group B (P=0.004). There was higher percentage of patients in group A (66%) than in group B (39%) in which the distance from the lower edge of the tumor to anal verge was less than 8 cm (P