Efficacy of Interferon-Based Therapy for COVID-19: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of interferon (IFN)-based therapy for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) based on relevant qualified studies. We searched for pertinent studies using keywords via PubMed, Cochrane and Embase databases. Studies from other pertinent sources and that were published before September 2021 were also reviewed.

For each study, we assessed and synthesized the outcomes by relative risk (RR) or weighted mean difference (WMD) combined with a 95% confidence interval (CI). A total of 8 studies involving 2442 patients with COVID-19 were evaluated in this meta-analysis.

The IFN group had a significant decrease in ICU admissions (RR: 0.705; 95% CI, 0.515-0.964) and death (RR: 0.416; 95% CI, 0.217-0.797), and increased duration of ICU stay (WMD: 0.996; 95% CI, 0.834-1.158) compared with the control group in the randomized clinical trial (RCT) subgroup analysis. In non-RCT subgroup analysis, the IFN group showed a significant increase in discharge rate (RR: 1.052; 95% CI, 1.004-1.101) compared with the control group.

IFN therapy appears to have better efficacy than non-IFN therapy as sedatives in patients with COVID-19 in terms of decreasing ICU admissions and death and increasing discharge. However, more high-quality RCTs are needed to confirm these findings.