[Comparative meta-analysis of immunoestimulant agents used in pediatric patients in Mexico]

To gather basic information of the double-blinded, placebo controlled studies about the use of immunostimulant agents to prevent acute respiratory infections in children and to make a meta-analysis of each one of them after six months of treatment.

Articles related to immunostimulant agents were looked up in Medline and EMBASE, and the ones referring to controlled studies were selected. Average data and the dispersion of the number of acute respiratory infections were extracted and combined as average differences considering the random-effect model for each one of the immunostimulant agents.

Only D53, LW50020, OM-85, pidotimod, and RU41740 had controlled studies. It was only possible to calculate the combined effects of D53, OM-85, pidotimod, and RU41740. The effects in the reduction of the number of acute respiratory infections were: global D53 -0.92 (-1.46, -0.39), average difference (confidence interval 95%) (p < 0.05); global OM-85 -1.20 (-1.70, -0.69) (p < 0.05), OM-85 in Mexico City -1.55 (-2.00, -1.10) (p < 0.05); global pidotimod -0.82 (-1.84, +0.21) (p > 0.05); global RU41740 -0.81 (-2.24, +0.62) (p > 0.05), RU41740 in Mexico City -1.20 (-4.33, +1.94) (p > 0.05). Effects in the reduction of acute respiratory infections as percentages were: global D53 31.86% (-34.32, -29.40) (p < 0.05); global OM-85 -39.28% (-52.58, -25.98) (p < 0.05), OM-85 in Mexico City -46.85% (-54.98, -38.72) (p < 0.05); global pidotimod -31.26% (-42.51, -20.01) (p < 0.05); global RU41740 -27.60 (-73.88, +18.69) (p > 0.05), RU41740 in Mexico City -27.89 (-104.11, +48.33) (p > 0.05).

Only D53 and OM-85 proved to have significant effect in the prevention of acute respiratory infections in children. Only OM-85 showed significant efficacy in Mexico City. LW50020, pidotimod, and RU41740 have some evidence of their efficacy, contrary to other immunostimulant agents that do not have it.