The effectiveness of cyclosporine A for patients with steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study is to determine the efficacy and safety of Cyclosporine A (CsA) for patients with steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome (SRNS). METHODS: This study will be designed following the guidelines of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Protocols statement guidelines. Studies are identified through systematic searches in November 2021 with no restrictions on date and time, and publication status using the following bibliographic databases: Embase, Medline, PubMed, Web of Science, Science Direct, and the Cochrane Library. The risk of bias of included studies is estimated by taking into consideration the characteristics including random sequence generation, allocation concealment, blinding of patients, blinding of outcome assessment, completeness of outcome data, selective reporting, and other bias by Cochrane Collaboration's tool. Data synthesis and analyses are performed using Stata version 10.0 software. RESULTS: The results of this systematic review and meta-analysis will be published in a peer-reviewed journal. CONCLUSION: CsA may be an effective and safe therapy for SRNS. However, additional randomized controlled studies are needed to thoroughly assess the role of CsA in the treatment of SRNS. OPEN SCIENCE FRAMEWORK REGISTRATION NUMBER: 10.17605/OSF.IO/P6YB9