Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34505026›Full record

ArticleEClinicalMedicine2021

Effect of omega-3 fatty acids on cardiovascular outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Safi U Khan, Ahmad N Lone, Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, Salim S Virani, Roger S Blumenthal, Khurram Nasir, Michael Miller, Erin D Michos, Christie M Ballantyne, William E Boden and 1 more

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

Article in EClinicalMedicine, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 171 papers, 16 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
171citing papers in PubMed, 16 pooled it
27.5field-weighted citation impact, top 1% 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

171 citing papers in PubMed, 16 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 360 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Formulation-Specific Cardiovascular Outcomes with High-Dose Eicosapentaenoic Acid: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.American journal of cardiovascular drugs : drugs, devices, and other interventions · 2026
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111 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

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

11 authors at 8 institutions in 1 country.

Safi U KhanDepartment of Medicine, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, United States.
Ahmad N LoneDepartment of Medicine, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, United States.
Muhammad Shahzeb KhanDepartment of Medicine, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, United States.
Salim S ViraniMichael E. DeBakey Veterans Affair Medical Center & Department of Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States.
Roger S BlumenthalCiccarone Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States.
Khurram NasirOutcomes Research, Houston Methodist, Houston, TX, United States.
Michael MillerDepartment of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, University of Maryland Medical Center, Baltimore, MD, United States.
Erin D MichosCiccarone Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States.
Christie M BallantyneMichael E. DeBakey Veterans Affair Medical Center & Department of Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States.
William E BodenVA New England Healthcare System, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States.
Deepak L BhattBrigham and Women's Hospital Heart and Vascular Center, Harvard Medical School, 75 Francis Street, Boston, MA 02115, United States.
Johns Hopkins University · USMichael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center · USWest Virginia University · USBoston University · USBrigham and Women's Hospital · USHouston Methodist · USUniversity of Maryland, Baltimore · USUniversity of Mississippi Medical Center · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe effects of omega-3 fatty acids (FAs), such as eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA) acids, on cardiovascular outcomes are uncertain. We aimed to determine the effectiveness of omega-3 FAs on fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular outcomes and examine the potential variability in EPA vs. EPA+DHA treatment effects.

methodsWe searched EMBASE, PubMed, ClinicalTrials.gov, and Cochrane library databases through June 7, 2021. We performed a meta-analysis of 38 randomized controlled trials of omega-3 FAs, stratified by EPA monotherapy and EPA+DHA therapy. We estimated random-effects rate ratios (RRs) with (95% confidence intervals) and rated the certainty of evidence using GRADE. The key outcomes of interest were cardiovascular mortality, non-fatal cardiovascular outcomes, bleeding, and atrial fibrillation (AF). The protocol was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42021227580).

findingsIn 149,051 participants, omega-3 FA was associated with reducing cardiovascular mortality (RR, 0.93 [0.88-0.98];

interpretationOmega-3 FAs reduced cardiovascular mortality and improved cardiovascular outcomes. The cardiovascular risk reduction was more prominent with EPA monotherapy than with EPA+DHA.

fundingNone.

Indexed as

Docosahexaenoic acidEicosapentaenoic acidMeta-analysisOmega-3 fatty acid

Identifiers

PMID34505026
PMCPMC8413259
OpenAlexW3179255618

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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.