Abstract
BACKGROUND: Monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) has been utilized as a prognostic indicator for sepsis patients; however, the findings have been inconsistent. This meta-analysis seeks to elucidate the prognostic significance of MCP-1 in individuals diagnosed with sepsis. METHODS: We systematically queried four databases (Web of Science, PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library) to identify studies published from the establishment of the databases until January 2025. Hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% CIs were employed to evaluate the prognostic significance of MCP-1 in this patient population. In our study, the Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale was evaluated for quality assessment, and Funnel plot was used for publication offset. RESULTS: A total of 592 patients from eight studies were included in the evaluation. The findings revealed that MCP-1 levels were significantly elevated in non-survivors compared to those who survived [SMD = 0.54, 95% CI: 0.25-0.82, P = 0.0002]. Our study demonstrated that elevated levels of MCP-1 were significantly associated with an unfavorable prognosis in patients with sepsis, with a hazard ratio (HR) of 1.36 (95% confidence interval: 1.25-1.48; P < 0.00001) using a random-effects model. The funnel plot indicated no publication bias. CONCLUSION: This meta-analysis suggests that elevated levels of MCP-1 could serve as a valuable prognostic indicator in sepsis patients, however, this conclusion still requires validation through higher-quality studies with longer-term follow-up.