Effect of N-acetylcysteine on prevention of contrast-associated acute kidney injury in patients with STEMI undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials

ObjectiveSeveral studies evaluating the preventive effect of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) on contrast-associated acute kidney injury (CA-AKI) among patients with ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) have suggested inconsistent results and that a systematic review and meta-analysis should be performed.DesignSystematic review and meta-analysis.Data sourcesPubMed, MEDLINE, EMBASE, ClinicalTrials.gov and the Cochrane Central databases were searched from inception to 15 November 2019.Eligibility criteriaRandomised controlled trials assessing use of NAC compared with non-use of NAC (eg, placebo) in preventing CA-AKI in patients with STEMI following PPCI were included.Data synthesisRelative risks with 95% CIs were pooled using a random-effects model. Evidence level of conclusions was assessed by Cochrane GRADE measure.ResultsSeven trials including 1710 patients were identified. Compared with non-use of NAC, use of NAC significantly reduced the incidence of CA-AKI by 49% (risk ratio (RR) 0.51, 95% CI 0.31 to 0.82, p