The safety and efficacy of daptomycin versus other antibiotics for skin and soft-tissue infections: a meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials.

objectiveDaptomycin, a cyclic lipopeptide that exhibits rapid, concentration-dependent bactericidal activity in vitro against a broad spectrum of Gram-positive pathogens, has now, since 2003, been approved in more than 70 countries and regions to treat skin and soft-tissue infections (SSTIs). The purpose of this meta-analysis was to compare the safety and efficacy of daptomycin with other antibiotics, especially with vancomycin which has long been considered the standard therapy for complicated SSTIs.

designMeta-analysis of randomised controlled trials (RCTs). DATA SOURCES: We thoroughly searched PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Central to identify relevant RCTs. Six RCTs with a total of 1710 patients were included in this meta-analysis.

resultsThe results demonstrated that the efficacy of daptomycin was at par with or maybe better than other first-line antibiotics for treating SSTIs as shown by the OR for clinical success (OR=1.05, 95% CI 0.84 to 1.31, p=0.65, I(2)=0%); daptomycin versus vancomycin subgroup (OR=1.19, 95% CI 0.77 to 1.83, p=0.43, I(2)=0%); overall microbiological success (OR=1.05, 95% CI 0.61 to 1.79, p=0.86, I(2)=42%); microbiological success of daptomycin versus comparators for Staphylococcus aureus (SA, OR=1.05, 95% CI 0.61 to 2.60, p=0.53, I(2)=47%), for methicillin-resistant S. aureus (OR=0.90, 95% CI 0.77 to 1.06, p=0.20, I(2)=56%). However, daptomycin tended to have a similar treatment-related adverse events (AEs) incidence in comparison with other antibiotics (OR=1.06, 95% CI 0.71 to 1.59, p=0.76, I(2)=41%). The trend showed that daptomycin might cause less discontinuation due to AEs and death compared with other first-line antibiotics (OR=0.71, 95% CI 0.46 to 1.10, p=0.12, I(2)=11%). Significantly more patients in the daptomyicn group had creatine phosphokinase elevation than those in the control group; however, it could be reversed when the therapy ended (OR=1.95, 95% CI 1.04 to 3.65, p=0.04, I(2)=0).

conclusionsThis meta-analysis demonstrated that the safety and efficacy of daptomycin was not inferior to that of other first-line drugs, and daptomycin tended to exhibit superior efficacy when compared with vancomycin or with comparators for SA infections; nevertheless, more high-quality RCTs are needed to draw a more credible conclusion.