Efficacy and safety of intravenous peramivir versus oral oseltamivir in the treatment of influenza in children: A meta-analysis

Objective

To investigate the efficacy and safety of intravenous peramivir compared to oral oseltamivir for pediatric influenza by a method of meta-analysis.

Methods

Clinical trials involving intravenous peramivir versus oral oseltamivir therapy in children with influenza were searched from six databases until July 2023. Data were processed using Stata 15.0 software.

Results

Seven published articles were identified in this review. The combined results exhibited that the clinical effective rate in the peramivir group (76.09 %) was higher than that in the oseltamivir group (58.85 %) (RR= 1.12, 95 %CI: 1.01∼1.24, P = 0.038). The incidence of adverse reactions in the peramivir group (13.31 %) was lower than that in the oseltamivir group (17.34 %) (RR= 0.77, 95 %CI: 0.61–0.96, P = 0.023). Compared with the oseltamivir group, the peramivir group had lower recovery time of body temperature (WMD= -19.81, 95 %CI: -27.58∼-12.04, P < 0.001).

Conclusion

Compared with oral oseltamivir, intravenous peramivir has better efficacy and higher safety for pediatric influenza.