Summary of findings 3. Darbepoetin versus rHuEPO for the anaemia of end‐stage kidney disease in dialysis patients.
| Darbepoetin versus rHuEPO for the anaemia of end‐stage kidney disease in dialysis patients | ||||||
| Patient or population: patients with the anaemia of end‐stage kidney disease in dialysis patients Settings: tertiary Intervention: darbepoetin versus rHuEPO | ||||||
| Outcomes | Illustrative comparative risks* (95% CI) | Relative effect (95% CI) | No of participants (studies) | Quality of the evidence (GRADE) | Comments | |
| Assumed risk | Corresponding risk | |||||
| Control | Darbepoetin versusrHuEPO | |||||
| Final/change in Hb (g/dL) | Mean final/change in Hb in the intervention groups was 0.02 higher (0.09 lower to 0.12 higher) | 1245 (6) | ⊕⊕⊕⊝ moderate¹ | |||
| Final/change in ESA dose | Mean final/change in ESA dose in the intervention groups was 12.27 lower (21.72 to 2.82 lower) | 757 (3) | ⊕⊕⊝⊝ low¹,² | |||
| All‐cause mortality | Study population | RR 1.29 (0.82 to 2.02) | 1596 (5) | ⊕⊕⊕⊝ moderate¹ | ||
| 55 per 1000 | 71 per 1000 (45 to 112) | |||||
| Moderate | ||||||
| 64 per 1000 | 83 per 1000 (52 to 129) | |||||
| Total treatment‐related adverse events | Study population | See comment | 570 (3) | Risks were calculated from pooled risk differences | ||
| 84 per 1000 | 91 per 1000 (54 to 134) | |||||
| Moderate | ||||||
| 17 per 1000 | 18 per 1000 (11 to 27) | |||||
| Hypertension | Study population | See comment | 1475 (4) | ⊕⊕⊝⊝ low¹,² | Risks were calculated from pooled risk differences | |
| 144 per 1000 | 137 per 1000 (84 to 194) | |||||
| Moderate | ||||||
| 70 per 1000 | 67 per 1000 (41 to 95) | |||||
| Access thrombosis/vascular complication | Study population | See comment | 1475 (4) | ⊕⊕⊕⊝ moderate¹ | Risks were calculated from pooled risk differences | |
| 95 per 1000 | 81 per 1000 (65 to 95) | |||||
| Moderate | ||||||
| 29 per 1000 | 25 per 1000 (20 to 29) | |||||
| Transfusion | Study population | See comment | 1069 (3) | ⊕⊕⊕⊝ moderate¹ | Risks were calculated from pooled risk differences | |
| 53 per 1000 | 29 per 1000 (3 to 53) | |||||
| Moderate | ||||||
| 50 per 1000 | 28 per 1000 (3 to 50) | |||||
| *The basis for the assumed risk (e.g. the median control group risk across studies) is provided in footnotes. The corresponding risk (and its 95% confidence interval) is based on the assumed risk in the comparison group and the relative effect of the intervention (and its 95% CI). CI: Confidence interval; RR: Risk ratio | ||||||
| GRADE Working Group grades of evidence High quality: Further research is very unlikely to change our confidence in the estimate of effect Moderate quality: Further research is likely to have an important impact on our confidence in the estimate of effect and may change the estimate Low quality: Further research is very likely to have an important impact on our confidence in the estimate of effect and is likely to change the estimate Very low quality: We are very uncertain about the estimate | ||||||
¹ High risk of bias for several domains in each study ² Significant heterogeneity between studies