Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34244956›Full record

ArticleInfectious diseases and therapy2021

Efficacy and Safety of Tocilizumab Treatment COVID-19 Patients: A Case-Control Study and Meta-Analysis.

Weijun Jiang, Weiwei Li, Qiuyue Wu, Ying Han, Jing Zhang, Tao Luo, Yanju Guo, Yang Yang, Peiran Zhu, Xinyi Xia

Open access · goldAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Infectious diseases and therapy, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
0.3field-weighted citation impact, top 43% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 5 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Weijun JiangCOVID-19 Research Center, Institute of Laboratory Medicine, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing University School of Medicine, The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Nanjing, 210002, Jiangsu, China.
Weiwei LiCOVID-19 Research Center, Institute of Laboratory Medicine, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing University School of Medicine, The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Nanjing, 210002, Jiangsu, China.
Qiuyue WuCOVID-19 Research Center, Institute of Laboratory Medicine, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing University School of Medicine, The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Nanjing, 210002, Jiangsu, China.
Ying HanCOVID-19 Research Center, Institute of Laboratory Medicine, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing University School of Medicine, The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Nanjing, 210002, Jiangsu, China.
Jing ZhangCOVID-19 Research Center, Institute of Laboratory Medicine, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing University School of Medicine, The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Nanjing, 210002, Jiangsu, China.
Tao LuoCOVID-19 Research Center, Institute of Laboratory Medicine, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing University School of Medicine, The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Nanjing, 210002, Jiangsu, China.
Yanju GuoCOVID-19 Research Center, Institute of Laboratory Medicine, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing University School of Medicine, The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Nanjing, 210002, Jiangsu, China.
Yang YangCOVID-19 Research Center, Institute of Laboratory Medicine, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing University School of Medicine, The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Nanjing, 210002, Jiangsu, China.
Peiran ZhuCOVID-19 Research Center, Institute of Laboratory Medicine, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing University School of Medicine, The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Nanjing, 210002, Jiangsu, China.
Xinyi XiaCOVID-19 Research Center, Institute of Laboratory Medicine, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing University School of Medicine, The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Nanjing, 210002, Jiangsu, China. xinyixia@nju.edu.cn.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7178-0505
Nanjing General Hospital of Nanjing Military Command · CNWuhan Blood Center · CN

Funding

Hubei Technological Innovation Special Fund 18JS005Key Foundation of Wuhan Huoshenshan Hospital 2020[18]Key Research & Development Program of Jiangsu Province BE2018713Scientific Research Project of Jiangsu Commission of Health H2019065
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionAs the pandemic progresses, the pathophysiology of COVID-19 is becoming more apparent, and the potential for tocilizumab is increasing. However, the clinical efficacy and safety of tocilizumab in the treatment of COVID-19 patients remain unclear.

methodsTo assess the efficacy and safety of tocilizumab treatment in COVID-19 patients, we performed a retrospective case-control study. The study was conducted, including 95 patients treated with tocilizumab plus standard treatment and matched controls with 95 patients treated with standard treatment therapy by propensity score from February to April 2020. We searched some databases using the search terms for studies published from January 1, 2020, to June 1, 2021.

resultsOur case-control study found a lower mortality rate in the tocilizumab treatment group than in the standard treatment group (9.47% versus 16.84%, P = 0.134), but the results were not statistically significant. We also found that the mortality rate in tocilizumab treatment groups was significantly lower than in the standard treatment group in the stratified ICU analysis (OR 0.52, 95% CI 0.44-0.61, P = 0.048 and OR 0.31, 95% CI 0.10-0.99, P = 0.044). We selected 49 studies (including 6568 cases and 11,660 controls) that met the inclusion criteria in the meta-analysis. In the overall analysis, we performed a meta-analysis that showed significantly decreased mortality after patients received tocilizumab (OR 0.81, 95% CI 0.69-0.95, P = 0.008). We also revealed significant associations within some subgroups. The sequential trial analysis showed a true-positive result. No significant associations were observed between tocilizumab and elevated secondary infection risk, discharge, adverse events, and mechanical ventilation in the overall analysis.

conclusionTocilizumab significantly decreased mortality in COVID-19 patients with no increased discharge, secondary infection risk, adverse events, and mechanical ventilation in a meta-analysis. Our data suggest that clinicians should pay attention to tocilizumab therapy as an effective and safe treatment for COVID-19 patients.

Indexed as

COVID-19EfficacyMeta-analysisSafetyTocilizumab

Identifiers

PMID34244956
PMCPMC8269405
OpenAlexW3178736531

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.