Efficacy of erythropoietin alone in treatment of neonates with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background Multiple clinical trials have demonstrated the safety and efficacy of erythropoietin in improving neurodevelopmental outcomes in infants with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE). It is undoubtedly urgent to include only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) for more standardized systematic reviews and meta-analyses. The purpose of this study is to examine whether erythropoietin reduces the risk of death and improve neurodevelopmental disorders in infants with HIE. Methods The electronic databases of Cochrane Library, EMBASE, PubMed, and Web of Science were searched from the inception to June 2021 using the following key terms: "erythropoietin," "hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy," and "prospective," for all relevant RCTs. Only English publications were included. The primary outcome was mortality rate. Secondary outcomes included neurodevelopmental disorders, brain injury, and cognitive impairment. The Cochrane risk of bias tool was independently used to evaluate the risk of bias of included RCTs by 2 reviewers. Results We hypothesized that group with erythropoietin would provide better therapeutic benefits compared with control group. Osf registration number 10.17605/OSF.IO/FERUS.