Tacrolimus Versus Cyclosporine as Primary Immunosuppressant After Renal Transplantation: A Meta-Analysis and Economics Evaluation.

Tacrolimus and cyclosporine are the major immunosuppressants for renal transplantation. Several studies have compared these 2 drugs, but the outcomes were not consistent. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy, safety, and pharmacoeconomics of cyclosporine and tacrolimus in the treatment of renal transplantation and provide evidence for the selection of essential drugs. Trials were identified through a computerized literature search of PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Controlled Trials Register, Cochrane Renal Group Specialized Register of randomized controlled trials, and Chinese Biomedical database. Two independent reviewers assessed trials for eligibility and quality and then extracted data. Data were extracted for patient and graft mortality, acute rejection, and adverse events. Dichotomous outcomes were reported as relative risk with 95% confidence intervals. A decision tree model was populated with data from a literature review and used to estimate costs and quality-adjusted life years gained and incremental cost-effectiveness. Altogether, 6137 patients from 27 randomized controlled trials were included. The results of our analysis were that tacrolimus reduced the risks after renal transplantation of patient mortality, graft loss, acute rejection, and hypercholesterolemia. Nevertheless, tacrolimus increased the risk of new-onset diabetes. Pharmacoeconomic analysis showed that tacrolimus represented a more cost-effective treatment than does cyclosporine for the prevention of adverse events following renal transplant. Tacrolimus is an effective and safe immunosuppressive agent and it may be more cost-effective than cyclosporine for the primary prevention of graft rejection in renal transplant recipients. However, new-onset diabetes should be closely monitored during the medication period.