Effect of docosahexaenoic acid on the recovery of motor function in rats with spinal cord injury: a meta-analysis

• Published in: Neural regeneration research 2020-03, Vol.15 (3), p.537-547
• Main Authors: Tian, Zi-Rui, Yao, Min, Zhou, Long-Yun, Song, Yong-Jia, Ye, Jie, Wang, Yong-Jun, Cui, Xue-Jun
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animal research; Bias; Care and treatment; Collaboration; DHA; docosahexaenoic acid; fatty acid; meta-analysis; motor function; motor function recover; polyunsaturated fatty acid; PUFA; spinal cord injury; systematic review; Drug dosages; Fatty acids; Full text; Full text databases; Health aspects; Intervention; Laboratory animals; Meta-analysis; Motor skills; Omega 3 fatty acids; Physiological aspects; Psychological aspects; Researchers; Software; Spinal cord injuries; Systematic review; Unsaturated fatty acids
• ISSN: 1673-5374; 1876-7958
• DOI: 10.4103/1673-5374.266065

Objective: Studies have shown that docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) has a beneficial effect in the treatment of spinal cord injury. A meta-analysis was used to study the effect of DHA on the neurological recovery in the rat spinal cord injury model, and the relationship between the recovery of motor function after spinal cord injury and the time and method of administration and the dose of DHA. Data source: Published studies on the effect of DHA on spinal cord injury animal models from seven databases were searched from their inception to January 2019, including PubMed, MEDLINE, EMBASE, the China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang, VIP, and SinoMed databases. The search terms included "spinal cord injury" "docosahexaenoic acid", and "rats". Data selection: Studies that evaluated the influence of DHA in rat models of spinal cord injury for locomotor functional recovery were included. The intervention group included any form of DHA treatment and the control group included treatment with normal saline, vehicle solution or no treatment. The Systematic Review Centre for Laboratory animal Experimentation's risk of bias assessment tool was used for the quality assessment of the included studies. Literature inclusion, quality evaluation and data extraction were performed by two researchers. Meta-analysis was then conducted on all studies that met the inclusion criteria. Statistical analysis was performed on the data using RevMan 5.1.2. software. Outcome measures: The primary outcome measure was the score on the Basso, Beattie, and Bresnahan scale. Secondary outcome measures were the sloping plate test, balance beam test, stair test and grid exploration test. Results: A total of 12 related studies were included, 3 of which were of higher quality and the remaining 9 were of lower quality. The highest mean Basso, Beattie, and Bresnahan scale score occurred at 42 days after DHA treatment in spinal cord injury rats. At 21 days after treatment, the mean difference in Basso, Beattie, Bresnahan scores between the DHA group and the control group was the most significant (pooled MD = 4.14; 95% CI = 3.58-4.70; P < 0.00001). In the subgroup analysis, improvement in the Basso, Beattie, and Bresnahan scale score was more significant in rats administered DHA intravenously (pooled MD = 2.74; 95% CI = 1.41-4.07; P < 0.0001) and subcutaneously (pooled MD = 2.99; 95% CI = 2.29-3.69; P < 0.00001) than in the groups administered DHA orally (pooled MD = 3.04; 95% CI = -1.01 to 7.09;