Analytical modelling techniques for enhancing tacrolimus dosing in solid organ transplantation: a systematic review protocol

• Published in: BMJ open 2024-11, Vol.14 (10), p.e088775
• Main Authors: Amooei, Elmira, Buh, Amos, Klamrowski, Martin M, Shorr, Risa, McCudden, Christopher R, Green, James R, Rashidi, Babak, Sood, Manish M, Hoar, Stephanie, Akbari, Ayub, Hundemer, Gregory L, Klein, Ran
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Graft Rejection - prevention & control; Humans; Immunosuppressive Agents - administration & dosage; Immunosuppressive Agents - pharmacokinetics; Organ Transplantation; Research Design; Systematic Reviews as Topic; Tacrolimus - administration & dosage; Tacrolimus - pharmacokinetics
• ISSN: 2044-6055; 2044-6055
• DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2024-088775

Tacrolimus is an immunosuppressant commonly administered in transplant recipients. Given its narrow therapeutic range and susceptibility to various influencing variables, determining its optimal dosage is challenging. This systematic review seeks to identify effective analytical modelling techniques and methods for optimal tacrolimus dose prediction in solid transplant recipients. This review will follow the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) criteria. The study will review the literature published from database inception to 11 March 2024, that assesses predictive models of tacrolimus dosing through analytical modelling techniques. We will include both randomised and non-randomised, as well as cross-sectional, qualitative and before-and-after studies and will perform our searches in four main databases-Ovid/MEDLINE, PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, Embase and Web of Science, and search engines including Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Google Scholar. Papers that are not published in English or French are excluded from this study. A narrative synthesis and meta-analysis will be done if the extracted information permits such analysis. Conference abstracts will be ignored unless they are recent (published within 2 years of the search date). Ethics clearance is not required for this study as no primary data will be collected. The completed manuscript will be published, and the results of the study will be presented at conferences. International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO), CRD42024537212.