Comparative efficacy and safety of topical hemostatic agents in primary total knee arthroplasty: A network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Topical hemostatic agents are commonly used for reducing perioperative blood loss and transfusion requirement in primary total knee arthroplasty (TKA), although the optimal option has yet to be defined. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of topical hemostatic agents and rank the best intervention using the network meta-analysis (NMA) method.

We searched Web of science, PubMed, and Cochrane Library database up to April 2020, for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on topical hemostatic agents in primary TKA. The quality of included studies was assessed using the Cochrane "risk of bias" tool. Direct and indirect comparisons were performed for the result of network meta-analysis followed by consistency test.

Thirty seven RCTs with 3792 patients were included in this NMA and the pooled results indicated that tranexamic acid plus diluted epinephrine (TXA+DEP) displayed the highest efficacy in reducing total blood loss, hemoglobin drop and transfusion requirement. None of the included treatments was found to increase risk of thromboembolic events compared to placebo. According to the results of ranking probabilities, TXA+DEP had the highest possibility to be the best topical hemostatic agent with regard to the greatest comparative efficacy and a relatively high safety level.

Current evidence supports that administration of TXA+DEP may be the optimal topical hemostatic agent to decrease blood loss and transfusion requirement in primary TKA. More direct studies that focused on the topical application of TXA+DEP versus other treatments are needed in the future.