Objective

To quantify the association between prophylactic radiologic interventions and perioperative blood loss during cesarean delivery in women with placenta accreta spectrum disorder through a systematic review and network meta-analysis.

Data sources

On January 3, 2023, a literature search was conducted in PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science. We also checked ClinicalTrials.gov retrospectively. Prophylactic radiologic interventions to reduce bleeding during cesarean delivery involved preoperative placement of balloon catheters, distal (internal or common iliac arteries) or proximal (abdominal aorta), or sheaths (uterine arteries). The primary outcome was volume of blood loss; secondary outcomes were the number of red blood cell units transfused and adverse events. Studies including women who received an emergency cesarean delivery were excluded.

Methods of study selection

Two authors independently screened citations for relevance, extracted data, and assessed the risk of bias of individual studies with the Cochrane Risk of Bias in Non-randomized Studies of Interventions tool.

Tabultation, integration, and results

From a total of 1,332 screened studies, 50 were included in the final analysis, comprising 5,962 women. These studies consisted of two randomized controlled trials and 48 observational studies. Thirty studies compared distal balloon occlusion with a control group, with a mean difference in blood loss of -406 mL (95% CI, -645 to -167). Fourteen studies compared proximal balloon occlusion with a control group, with a mean difference of -1,041 mL (95% CI, -1,371 to -710). Sensitivity analysis excluding studies with serious or critical risk of bias provided similar results. Five studies compared uterine artery embolization with a control group, all with serious or critical risk of bias; the mean difference was -936 mL (95% CI, -1,522 to -350). Reported information on adverse events was limited.

Conclusion

Although the predominance of observational studies in the included literature warrants caution in interpreting the findings of this meta-analysis, our findings suggest that prophylactic placement of balloon catheters or sheaths before planned cesarean delivery in women with placenta accreta spectrum disorder may, in some cases, substantially reduce perioperative blood loss. Further study is required to quantify the efficacy according to various severities of placenta accreta spectrum disorder and the associated safety of these radiologic interventions.

Systematic review registration

PROSPERO, CRD42022320922.

Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.