Colchicine in Acute Coronary Syndrome: A Systematic Review

The purpose of this review is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of colchicine after acute coronary syndrome (ACS).

English-language searches were made of MEDLINE and EMBASE from database inception through mid-June 2020.

Randomized trials characterizing the effects of colchicine in ACS were considered. Of 627 title and abstracts identified, nine trials were included. Two reviewers extracted data and rated study quality.

Four studies showed colchicine did not attenuate C-reactive protein production. Colchicine did modulate the NOD-like receptor family pyrin domain containing 3 inflammasome in 3 studies and reduced production of chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2), CCL5, and C-X3-C motif chemokine ligand 1 in 1 study. Major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) were not significantly different at 30 days in 3 studies, administered as 1.8 mg preprocedurally or scheduled 1 mg daily. One study found a significant reduction in MACE with colchicine 0.5 mg daily over median 22.6 months (hazard ratio = 0.77; 95% CI = 0.61-0.96). Colchicine is associated with increased gastrointestinal adverse events but was generally well tolerated.

Colchicine is likely to reduce MACE in an ACS population if administered for greater than 30 days but does not improve MACE when administered only preprocedurally.

Adjunctive colchicine 0.5 mg daily for greater than 30 days is reasonable for an ACS population on guideline-directed medical therapy treated with PCI. Additional studies are needed to validate and determine the durability of these benefits.