Objective：This study aims to evaluate effects of continuous subglottic suction and intermittent subglottic suction on prevention of ventilator-associated pneumonia（VAP）and damage to airway mucosa. Methods：Randomized controlled trials published in PubMed，Cochrane library，Web of Science，Science Direct，EMBASE，CNKI，WANFANG，VIP regarding comparison between continuous and intermittent subglottic secretion drainage were searched from database inception to March 31st，2019. Two reviewers independently screened literatures，extracted data，and evaluated the risk of bias in the included studies，then Review Manager 5.3 and Stata15.1 software were used for meta-analysis. Results：Nine studies enrolling a total of 865 patients were included. The results of meta-analysis showed there were no significant differences in the incidence of VAP［RR=1.06，95%CI（0.88-1.28），P=0.53］，incidence of early-onset VAP［RR=1.09，95%CI（0.66-1.79），P=0.74］，duration of mechanical ventilation［MD=0.12，95%CI（-0.49~0.72），P=0.70］，length of staying in intensive care unit［MD=-0.16，95%CI（-0.88~0.56），P=0.66］and mortality rate［RR=0.92，95%CI（0.69~1.23），P=0.58］ between continuous and intermittent subglottic secretion drainage. The incidence of testing for occult blood［RR=2.74，95%CI（1.72-4.37），P < 0.000 1］ of intermittent subglottic secretion drainage was lower than continuous subglottic secretion drainage. Conclusion：There were no apparent differences between continuous and intermittent subglottic secretion drainage for preventing VAP，but continuous subglottic secretion drainage was easy to damage tracheal mucosa.