The efficacy of thymosin alpha-1 therapy in moderate to critical COVID-19 patients: a systematic review, meta-analysis, and meta-regression
Soeroto AY, Suryadinata H, Yanto TA, Hariyanto TI (2023). Inflammopharmacology.
Summary
Pooled eight studies of thymosin alpha-1 in moderate to critical COVID-19. Mortality was lower in treated patients (risk ratio 0.59), but the need for mechanical ventilation and length of hospital stay did not differ. The authors report very high statistical heterogeneity between the pooled studies, meaning the studies disagreed with each other substantially, and note that the mortality benefit was affected by sample size and by sex in meta-regression. They call for randomised trials to verify the finding.