The therapeutic effect of norepinephrine alone or in combination with vasopressin on septic shock patients: a meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the effects of norepinephrine alone versus norepinephrine in combination with vasopressin on clinical outcomes in patients with septic shock using a Meta-analysis.

METHODS

Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing norepinephrine monotherapy and combination therapy with vasopressin in septic shock patients were identified through searches of China Knowledge, Wanfang, VIP, and Pubmed databases for studies published between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2024. Eligible studies were screened based on predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Methodological quality was assessed, and data were analyzed using RevMan 5.4 software.

RESULTS

Fifteen RCTs involving 1,481 patients were included. Meta-analysis demonstrated that the combination therapy (norepinephrine + vasopressin) significantly improved mean arterial pressure, lactate clearance, heart rate, central venous oxygen saturation, oxygen delivery, and urine output, while reducing blood ammonia and intestinal-type fatty acid-binding protein levels (all P<0.00001). However, mortality did not differ significantly between the groups (OR=1.13, 95% CI: 0.94, 1.35; P=0.19). The results of the subgroup variable analysis demonstrated that lactate and heart rate were homogeneous across different age groups, and mean arterial pressure was homogeneous across different sample size groups (P>0.05).

CONCLUSION

The addition of vasopressin to norepinephrine significantly improves hemodynamic parameters in septic shock patients but does not obviously reduce mortality. Further high-quality RCTs are warranted to validate these findings.