Objective: To compare the clinical effects between hand-assisted laparoscopic splenectomy and open splenectomy by means of systematical review. Methods: The domestically published literature of studies (1991 to 2012) regarding hand-assisted laparoscopic splenectomy versus open splenectomy was collected, and the studies that met the inclusion criterion were reviewed by Meta-analysis. Results: Eight studies were finally included after screen, with a total of 419 patients, of whom, 202 cases received hand-assisted laparoscopic splenectomy (hand-assisted group) and 217 cases underwent open splenectomy (open surgery group). The results of Meta-analysis showed that the operative time was prolonged, but the intraoperative blood loss, time to gastrointestinal function recovery and length of hospital stay were all reduced in hand-assisted group compared with open surgery group (all P<0.05). Conclusion: Hand-assisted laparoscopic splenectomy has the advantages of less bleeding, fast gastrointestinal function recovery and short hospital stay. However, this conclusion should be considered cautiously, due to the risk of bias created by many non-randomized studies included in this review. So it remains to be confirmed by further multi-center, large sample size and randomized controlled trials.