ObjectiveTo determine the efficacy of omalizumab in patients (12~75 years of age) with severe allergic asthma, and guide its clinical application. MethodsDatabases, including Pubmed, Web of Science and Embase, were searched to collect randomized controlled trials (RCTs).Data were extracted, and the quality of included RCTs was assessed by two reviewers, followed by meta-analyses using Review Manage 5.1 software. ResultsMeta-analyses of ten included RCTs showed that, compared with placebo, omalizumab reduced the rate of exacerbation per patient during both stable-steroid phase [RR=0.56, 95% CI(0.42, 0.75), P < 0.000 1] and steroid-reduction phase for patients with severe asthma [RR=0.53, 95% CI(0.48, 0.60), P < 0.000 01], reduced the number of patients experienced at least one exacerbation [RR=0.71, 95% CI(0.61, 0.84), P < 0.000 01], and significantly reduced the dosage of beclomethasone dipropionate (≥50%) [RR=1.51, 95% CI(1.24, 1.84), P < 0.001].Omalizumab significantly improved asthma-related quality of life [RR=1.25, 95% CI(1.13, 1.38), P < 0.000 01], albeit no indications of omalizumab reducing the rate of emergency visits [RR=0.63, 95% CI(0.28, 1.44), P < 0.001]. ConclusionThe addition of omalizumab to standard asthma therapy reduces asthma exacerbations, decreases inhaled corticosteroid and rescue medication use, and improves the quality of life in severe asthma patients.
Objective To evaluate the efficacy and safety of meperizumab for patients with refractory asthma by means of meta-analysis. Methods PubMed, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure and other databases were searched for literatures on randomized controlled trials of meperizumab for patients with refractory asthma published before October 30, 2021. The Endnote X9.2 software was used to summarize and eliminate duplicate studies. The literature was screened according to the pre-specified inclusion and exclusion criteria, and data extraction and quality evaluation were performed on the selected literature. Stata 16.0 was used for meta-analysis. Results A total of 632 related articles were detected, and 8 articles were included after screening, including 2438 subjects. Meta-analysis results showed that the patients with refractory asthma treated with meperizumab had a 22% reduction in the risk of exacerbation [relative risk (RR)=0.78, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.70 to 0.88], forced expiratory volume in one second [weighted mean difference (WMD)=0.10, 95%CI 0.06 to 0.13] and asthma control questionnaire score (WMD=–0.32, 95%CI –0.47 to –0.17) were improved, blood eosinophil count (WMD=–0.23, 95%CI –0.37 to –0.09) and sputum eosinophil count (WMD=–6.37, 95%CI –9.68 to –3.06) were significantly decreased. The probability of serious adverse reactions was significantly reduced (RR=0.65, 95%CI 0.47 to 0.90). Conclusion Meperizumab can effectively reduce the risk of exacerbation for asthma, improve lung function and asthma control level, reduce blood eosinophil count and sputum eosinophil count, and reduce the incidence of serious adverse reactions in patients with refractory asthma.
Objective To screen the key genes in childhood therapy-resistant asthma by bioinformatic method, and to verify its expression and diagnostic value in peripheral blood of children with therapy-resistant asthma. Methods The transcriptome dataset GSE27011 of peripheral blood mononuclear cells from healthy children (healthy control group), mild asthma (MA) children (MA group) and severe asthma (SA) children (SA group) was downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus of the National Center for Biotechnology Information of the United States. Key genes were obtained by using R software for gene differential expression analysis, weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) and clinical phenotypic correlation analysis. The differential expression levels of key genes were verified in children with asthma and immune cell transcriptome datasets. Seventy-eight children with asthma and 30 healthy children who were diagnosed in the Department of Pediatrics of Tangshan People’s Hospital between September 2020 and September 2021 were selected and divided into control group, MA group and SA group. Peripheral blood samples from children with asthma and healthy children who underwent physical examination were collected to detect the expression levels of key genes and inflammatory factors interleukin (IL)-4 and IL-17 in peripheral blood of children. Receiver operating characteristic curve was used to evaluate the sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of key genes in predicting childhood therapy-resistant asthma. Results The key gene GNA15 was obtained by bioinformatic analysis. Analysis of asthma validation dataset showed that GNA15 was up-regulated in asthma groups, and was specifically expressed in eosinophils. Clinical results showed that the expression levels of IL-4, IL-17 and GNA15 among the three groups were significantly different (P<0.05). The expression levels of IL-4 and IL-17 in the MA group and the SA group were higher than those in the control group (P<0.05). Compared with the control group and the MA group, the expression level of GNA15 in the SA group was up-regulated (P<0.05). Neither the difference in the expression level of IL-4 or IL-17 between the MA group and the SA group, nor the difference in the expression level of GNA15 between the control group and the MA group was statistically significant (P>0.05). The specificity, sensitivity and accuracy of GNA15 in predicting SA were 92.90%, 80.00% and 86.10%, respectively. Conclusion GNA15 has a significant clinical value in predicting the childhood therapy-resistant asthma, and may become a potential diagnostic marker for predicting the severity of asthma in children.