Thyroid Dysfunction and cardiovascular events in patients with chronic kidney disease: A protocol of systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND Cardiovascular disease is the main cause of death in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Studies have found that hypothyroidism can significantly increase cardiovascular risk. Meanwhile, hypothyroidism is a common complication of CKD, but the correlation between hypothyroidism and cardiovascular risk in CKD patients has not been verified and paid enough attention. We therefore plan to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to explore whether hypothyroidism was independently predictive for the cardiovascular risk in patients with CKD. METHODS We will search in PubMed, Embase Database, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), China Biology Medicine Database (CBM), and Wanfang Database, and include the cross-sectional studies, case--control studies, and cohort studies that explore the association between hypothyroidism and cardiovascular risk in CKD patients. According to the eligibility criteria, two researchers will independently screen the retrieved literature, evaluate the methodological quality, and extract data. We will combine the extracted data based on STATA and TSA software. RESULTS This systematic review will assess the association between hypothyroidism and cardiovascular risk in CKD patients based on the incidence of cardiovascular events in CKD people with hypothyroidism. CONCLUSIONS This study will provide more evidence for the correlation between hypothyroidism and cardiovascular risk in CKD patients, which will contribute to the management and clinical practice of CKD population. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION This protocol is based on available literatures so that the ethical approval and informed consent are not applicable. The results of this study will be published in a peer-reviewed journals or relevant conferences. PROTOCOL REGISTRATION NUMBER INPLASY2020100022.