Opioids for treating refractory dyspnea in patients with heart failure: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis

Dyspnea is a hallmark symptom of heart failure. The existing clinical studies have indicated that opioid can effectively improve the clinical symptoms of heart failure patients with dyspnea. However, there has not been any relevant systematic review and meta-analysis. We performed a protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the safety and efficacy of opioid therapy for heart failure patients with refractory dyspnea. METHODS: We searched 3 foreign electronic databases (Cochrane Library, Embase, Pubmed) and 4 Chinese electronic databases (China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wang Fang Database, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database and Chinese Scientific Journal Database) to collect potential studies from their inceptions to October 2022. The risk of bias in the included articles was assessed according to the Risk of Bias Assessment Tool in Cochrane Handbook of Systematic Reviews (5th edition). The quality of evidence was assessed by the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation approach. Data were analyzed using the RevMan Version 5.4.1. RESULTS: This study will evaluate whether opioid is effective and safe for treating refractory dyspnea in patients with heart failure. CONCLUSION: This meta-analysis will provide comprehensive evidence of opioid therapy for heart failure patients with dyspnea.