Value of retrograde pulmonary vein perfusion combined with pulmonary artery thrombectomy in acute pulmonary embolism: a protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis

INTRODUCTION: Acute pulmonary embolism is a serious cardiovascular disease with high mortality. Surgery is an important therapeutic means. The traditional surgical method is pulmonary artery embolectomy with cardiopulmonary bypass, but there is a certain recurrence rate after surgery. Some scholars use retrograde pulmonary vein perfusion as an adjunct to conventional pulmonary artery embolectomy. However, whether this method can be used safely for acute pulmonary embolism and its long-term effects remains unclear. Therefore, we plan to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate whether retrograde pulmonary vein perfusion combined with pulmonary artery thrombectomy can be safely used in acute pulmonary embolism. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: We will search key databases (Ovid MEDLINE, PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, China Science and Technology Journals and Wanfang) for studies on acute pulmonary embolism treated with retrograde pulmonary vein perfusion from January 2002 to December 2022. The useful information will be consolidated into a piloting spreadsheet. The Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool will be used to assess the bias. Data will be synthesised and heterogeneity will be evaluated. The dichotomous variables will be determined by using risk ratio with 95% CI, and weighted mean differences (with 95% CI) or standardised mean differences (95% CI) will be used for continuous variables. Χ(2) test and I(2) test will be used to assess the statistical heterogeneity. Meta-analysis will be conducted when strong homogeneous data are accessible. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Approval of the ethics committee is not needed for this review. While results will be disseminated electronically, effective dissemination will be done through presentations and peer-reviewed publication. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42022345812; pre-results.