A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Efficacy and Safety of Cilostazol Prescription in Patients With Femoropopliteal Peripheral Artery Disease After Endovascular Therapy

Abstract

Purpose:

The purpose of this study is to assess the efficacy and safety of cilostazol prescription in patients with femoropopliteal peripheral artery disease (PAD) after endovascular therapy (EVT).

Materials and methods:

We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of all studies reporting the outcomes of cilostazol after femoropopliteal EVT of PAD up to September 2022. Clinical outcomes of interest included primary patency, in-stent restenosis (ISR), vessel re-occlusion, freedom from target lesion revascularization (TLR), repeat revascularization, all-cause mortality, amputation, major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) and major adverse limb events (MALEs), and bleeding complication.

Results:

A total of 4 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and 8 observational studies containing a total of 4898 patients met the inclusion criteria and were included in this systematic review and meta-analysis. We found that the use of cilostazol was associated with higher primary patency after femoropopliteal artery EVT (odds ratio [OR]=1.67, 95% confidence interval [CI]=1.50-1.87, p<0.001, I²=33.2%), a lower risk of ISR (OR=0.43, 95% CI=0.29-0.63, p<0.001, I²=37.6%), repeat revascularization (OR=0.43, 95% CI=0.24-0.76, p<0.005, I²=27.4%), and vessel re-occlusion (OR=0.59, 95% CI=0.38-0.93, p<0.05, I²=0%). There was an increase in freedom from TLR rate (OR=2.19, 95% CI=1.58-3.05, p<0.001, I²=0%), as well as a reduction in the occurrence of MALEs (OR=0.50, 95% CI=0.29-0.85, p<0.05, I²=0%). However, there was no significant difference in amputation, MACEs, all-cause mortality, and major bleeding complications. Subgroup analysis showed that cilostazol treatment in patients with femoropopliteal drug-eluting stents (DES) implantation remained associated with higher primary patency and a lower risk of ISR.

Conclusions:

After EVT of femoropopliteal artery lesions, additional oral cilostazol enhances primary patency, reduces the occurrences of ISR and vessel re-occlusion, diminishes the risks associated with MALEs, lowers the need for repeat revascularization, and increases freedom from TLR rates. However, it does not impact amputation, MACEs, all-cause mortality, or major bleeding complications. These findings suggest cilostazol as a potentially safe and effective adjunct therapy in patients with femoropopliteal PAD after EVT.

Clinical Impact

After undergoing endovascular therapy (EVT) for femoropopliteal artery lesions, the addition of cilostazol to antiplatelet therapy can significantly improve primary patency, reducing the incidence of in-stent restenosis, repeat revascularization, vessel re-occlusion, and major adverse limb events while increasing freedom from target lesion revascularization rate. The simultaneous use of drug-eluting stents in the femoropopliteal artery lesions, combined with cilostazol, potentially results in a synergistic anti-stenotic effect. This therapeutic approach does not appear to be associated with an increased risk of major bleeding events or all-cause mortality. These findings provide additional evidence supporting the treatment of anti-stenosis in patients with femoropopliteal artery lesions after EVT.