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Published on: October 12, 2012
Anticoagulation Among Patients Hospitalized for COVID-19 : A Systematic Review and Prospective Meta-analysis
Background:
Reported results of clinical trials assessing higher-dose anticoagulation in patients hospitalized for COVID-19 have been inconsistent.
Purpose:
To estimate the association of higher- versus lower-dose anticoagulation with clinical outcomes.
Data Sources:
Randomized trials were identified from the World Health Organization's International Clinical Trials Registry Platform and ClinicalTrials.gov with no restriction by trial status or language.
Study Selection:
Eligible randomized trials assigned patients hospitalized for COVID-19 to higher- versus lower-dose anticoagulation.
Data Extraction:
20 eligible trials provided data in a prospectively agreed format. Two further studies were included based on published data. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality 28 days after randomization. Secondary outcomes were progression to invasive mechanical ventilation or death, thromboembolic events, and major bleeding.
Data Synthesis:
Therapeutic- compared with prophylactic-dose anticoagulation with heparins reduced 28-day mortality (OR, 0.77 [95% CI, 0.64 to 0.93]; I 2 = 29%; 11 trials, 6297 patients, of whom 5456 required low or no oxygen at randomization). The ORs for 28-day mortality were 1.21 (CI, 0.93 to 1.58; I 2 = 0%) for therapeutic-dose compared with intermediate-dose anticoagulation (6 trials, 1803 patients, 843 receiving noninvasive ventilation at randomization) and 0.95 (CI, 0.76 to 1.19; I 2 = 0%; 10 trials, 3897 patients, 2935 receiving no or low oxygen at randomization) for intermediate- versus prophylactic-dose anticoagulation. Treatment effects appeared broadly consistent across predefined patient subgroups, although some analyses were limited in power. Higher- compared with lower-dose anticoagulation was associated with fewer thromboembolic events, but a greater risk for major bleeding.
Conclusion:
Therapeutic-dose compared with prophylactic-dose anticoagulation reduced 28-day mortality. Mortality was similar for intermediate-dose compared with prophylactic-dose anticoagulation and higher for therapeutic-dose compared with intermediate-dose anticoagulation, although this comparison was not estimated precisely.
Primary Funding Source:
No direct funding. (PROSPERO: CRD42020213461).
