Feasibility of Ultrasound-Assisted Catheter-Directed Thrombolysis for Submassive Pulmonary Embolism: A meta-analysis of Case Series.

Background During the past few years, there has been a surge in the use of ultrasound-assisted catheter-directed thrombolysis (UACDT) for submassive pulmonary embolism (SPE). However, few studies evaluated the feasibility of UACDT for SPE. Purpose To evaluate the feasibility of UACDT in treating SPE. Methods A comprehensive search of online databases was performed. Search terms UACDT in SPE were entered into PubMed, Embase, Scopus and the Cochrane Library to identify related articles published until October 2018. A quality assessment and data extraction were performed by two researchers. Meta-analysis was performed using R statistical software. Results Twelve studies with 485 patients were included in this meta-analysis. The pooled right ventricular/left ventricular ratio decrease and pulmonary artery systolic pressure drop after treatment was -0.34 (95% CI: -0.43, -0.25) and -15.05 (95% CI: -18.10, -12.00) mm Hg, respectively. The pooled major bleeding rate was 1.0% (95% CI: 0.0%, 3.0%), and the in-hospital mortality was 0.0% (95% CI: 0.0%, 1.0%). Conclusion This up to data meta-analysis confirms that UACDT is a feasible treatment for SPE.