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Review
. 2022 Feb 7:13:819327.
doi: 10.3389/fphar.2022.819327. eCollection 2022.

Efficacy and Safety of Finerenone in Chronic Kidney Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials

Affiliations
Review

Efficacy and Safety of Finerenone in Chronic Kidney Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials

Ming-Zhu Zhang et al. Front Pharmacol. .

Abstract

Background: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a global public health issue. In recent years, the effectiveness of finerenone for treatment of CKD has been the subject of considerable debate. The main objective of the current meta-analysis was to validate the clinical efficacy and safety of finerenone in patients with CKD. Methods: Seven databases were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing finerenone with placebo in patients with CKD. Data from eligible studies were extracted, and the Cochrane risk of bias tool utilized for evaluating the methodological quality of RCTs. The effect size was estimated using the risk ratio (RR) and mean difference (MD) with 95% confidence interval (CI). Results: Five trials (n = 13,078) were included. Compared to placebo groups, the urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UACR) mean from the baseline was significantly lower [MD -0.30 (95% CI -0.32, -0.28), p < 0.00001], while a decrease in the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) from baseline was significantly higher [MD -2.44 (95% CI -2.82, -2.05), p < 0.00001] for the finerenone groups. Furthermore, the proportion of patients with decreased eGFR (≥40%) post-baseline was significantly lower [RR 0.85 (95% CI 0.78, 0.93), p = 0.0002], along with end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) [RR 0.80 (95% CI 0.65, 0.99), p = 0.04] and cardiovascular events (CVs) [RR 0.88 (95% CI 0.80, 0.95), p < 0.003] in the finerenone groups. In terms of safety, the increase in the serum potassium concentration and incidence of hyperkalemia was significantly higher for the finerenone groups [MD 0.17 (95% CI 0.10, 0.24), p < 0.00001; RR 2.03 (95% CI 1.83, 2.26), p < 0.00001, respectively], but the incidence of adverse events (AEs) was similar to placebo [RR 1.00 (95% CI 0.98-1.01), p = 0.67]. In all cases, the results were rated as providing moderate-quality or high-quality evidence. Conclusion: Data from our meta-analysis suggest that finerenone confers significant renal and cardiovascular benefits in patients with CKD. While higher risk of hyperkalemia was observed with finerenone than placebo, differences in AEs were not significant. Finerenone may therefore present a novel promising therapeutic agent for patients with CKD. Systematic Review Registration: [https://inplasy.com/inplasy-2021-9-0020/], identifier [INPLASY202190020].

Keywords: chronic kidney disease; finerenone; meta-analysis; randomized clinical trials; systematic review.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Flow diagram of the screening process.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Risk of bias graph: Data for each risk-of-bias item presented as percentages across all included studies.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Meta-analysis results of mean of the UACR from the baseline for finerenone and placebo patient groups.
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
Meta-analysis results of changes in the eGFR from the baseline for finerenone and placebo patient groups.
FIGURE 5
FIGURE 5
Meta-analysis results of the proportion of patients with ≥40% decrease in the eGFR in finerenone versus placebo patient groups.
FIGURE 6
FIGURE 6
Meta-analysis results of the efficacy of finerenone versus placebo for end-stage kidney disease.
FIGURE 7
FIGURE 7
Meta-analysis results of the effect of finerenone versus placebo on cardiovascular events.
FIGURE 8
FIGURE 8
Meta-analysis results of changes in serum potassium concentration between finerenone and placebo patient groups.
FIGURE 9
FIGURE 9
Meta-analysis results of hyperkalemia in finerenone compared to placebo patient groups.
FIGURE 10
FIGURE 10
Meta-analysis results of adverse events in finerenone compared to placebo patient groups.

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