Effectiveness and safety of tetracyclines and quinolones in people with Mycoplasma pneumonia: a systematic review and network meta-analysis

The escalating resistance of Mycoplasma pneumoniae to macrolides has become a significant global health concern, particularly in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). Although tetracyclines and quinolones have been proposed as alternative therapeutic options, concerns regarding age-specific safety issues and the lack of consensus in recommendations across various national guidelines prevail. Thus, the primary objective of this study is to ascertain the most efficacious interventions for second-line treatment of M. pneumoniae infection while considering the age-specific safety issues associated with these interventions. In this systematic review and network meta-analysis we searched PubMed, Embase, CNKI, and WanFang Data, from inception up to November 11th, 2023. Studies of quinolones or tetracyclines for the treatment of people with M. pneumoniae infection were collected and screened by reading published reports, with any type of study included, and no individual patient-level data requested. A systematic review and direct meta-analysis compared the efficacy of tetracyclines and quinolones regarding time to defervescence (TTD) and the rates of fever disappearance within 24 h and 48 h of antibiotic administration, for managing M. pneumoniae infection. Bayesian network meta-analysis (NMA) was employed to indirectly assess the relative effectiveness of different interventions in people with M. pneumoniae infection and the safety profile of medication in paediatric patients. This study is registered with PROSPERO, CRD42023478383. The systematic review and direct meta-analysis included a total of 4 articles involving 246 patients, while the NMA encompassed 85 articles involving a substantial cohort of 7095 patients. The NMA measured the effectiveness across all ages and included 7043 patients, with a mean age of 37.80 ± 3.91 years. Of the 85 included studies, 14 (16.5%) were at low risk of bias, 71 (83.5%) were at moderate risk, and no studies were rated as having a high risk of bias. In the direct meta-analysis, no statistically significant differences were found between tetracyclines and quinolones concerning TTD (mean difference: −0.40, 95% CI: −1.43 to 0.63; I2 = 0%), fever disappearance rate within 24 h of antibiotic administration (OR: 0.37, 95% CI: 0.08–1.79; I2 = 58%), and fever disappearance rate within 48 h of antibiotic administration (OR: 1.10, 95% CI: 0.30–3.98; I2 = 59%). However, the comprehensive NMA analysis of clinical response (in 7