Abstract
BACKGROUND: Direct comparisons between the drugs are limited, and the dosing remains debatable. Therefore, the study aims to indirectly compare the efficacy and safety of inclisiran, alirocumab, evolocumab, and evinacumab in lipid-lowering through a network meta-analysis. METHODS: Databases including PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library were utilized to retrieve randomized controlled trials (RCTs). The search was conducted up to July 1, 2023. The Cochrane risk of bias tool was employed to appraise the quality of included studies. R software was used to conduct the Bayesian network meta-analysis. RESULTS: Twenty-one RCTs with 10,835 patients were included. The network meta-analysis indicated that Evolocumab [mean difference (MD) = -60, 95% credibility interval (CrI) (-72, -49)] was the most effective (87%) in reducing low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), followed by alirocumab (71.4%) and inclisiran (47.2%), with placebo being the least effective (0.01%). In increasing high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), evolocumab [MD = 6.5, 95% CrI (3.2, 10)] ranked first (81.8%), followed by alirocumab (68.2%), with placebo again at the bottom (0.03%). In lowering total cholesterol, evolocumab [MD = -36, 95% CrI (-54, -19)] performed the best (86%), followed by alirocumab (64%), and placebo remained the least effective (0.04%). Regarding adverse events (AEs), evinacumab [odds ratio (OR) = 2, 95% CrI (1.17, 3.44)] ranked the highest (98.9%), followed by inclisiran (59.6%) and evolocumab (15.2%). CONCLUSIONS: Evolocumab appears to be the most effective in increasing HDL-C and reducing LDL-C and total cholesterol. Evinacumab shows the best safety profile with the lowest incidence of AEs. THE PROSPERO REGISTRATION: CRD42024570445, https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=570445.