Does hemoperfusion in combination with other treatments reduce the mortality of patients with paraquat poisoning more than hemoperfusion alone: A systematic review with meta-analysis

Background: Paraquat (PQ) poisoning is a serious public health problem in many countries. In spite of different treatments, the mortality is still high. We performed a meta‑analysis to see whether hemoperfusion (HP) in combination with other treatments reduces the mortality more than HP alone in patients with PQ poisoning. Materials and Methods: We searched EMBASE, PubMed, Google Scholar, ISI Web of Knowledge, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Scopus, Springer, TRIP, ProQuest, and references of the included studies from January 2000 to August 2017. Two reviewers independently searched and extracted data. We measured I2 to determine variance contributed by heterogeneity. To investigate the publication bias, Begg’s and Egger’s tests were used along with funnel plot analysis. Results: Ultimately 12 articles were included in the meta‑analysis. Five articles compared HP with conventional therapy with a total of 1311 patients, and seven articles compared mortality of patients received HP versus those received HP in combination with an additional treatment. HP alone reduced the odds of death (odds ratio [OR] = 0.20; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.11–0.40, P < 0.0001) compared to conventional therapy. Furthermore, the odds of death was higher in HP group compared to those received HP in combination of additional treatments (OR = 1.24; 95% CI: 1.05–1.46, P = 0.01). Conclusion: The mortality was less in HP‑treated group compared to those received only conventional therapy. Addition of other treatments with HP reduced the mortality more than HP alone.