Podocyte proteins as biomarkers of glomerular injury in patients with kidney disease: a protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis
Kidney disease. Glomerular injury. Podocytes. Podocyte proteins.
The use of podocyte proteins as biomarkers of kidney disease can be an important tool for its early diagnosis, as it can contribute to the adoption of appropriate and immediate treatment, delaying or reducing undesirable outcomes and the need for renal replacement therapy. In short, providing not only a longer survival, but also a good quality of life for patients with kidney disease. Therefore, this systematic review (SR) aims to summarize the scientific evidence on using podocyte proteins as biomarkers for the early diagnosis of glomerular lesions in patients with kidney disease. The bibliographic search was carried out in the electronic databases PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Scopus, without date or language restrictions. The "gray literature" was searched on Google Scholar. Observational studies (cohort and case-control) that demonstrated the relationship of podocyte proteins as biomarkers of kidney disease were researched. This SR follows the 27 items of the PRISMA recommendation (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses). Three reviewers initiated Study selection independently, assessing studies for eligibility using predefined criteria. The reviewers independently extracted data from each included study using standardized forms developed by the authors. The risk of bias will be assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS). The Grading, Development, and Evaluation of Recommendations (GRADE) method will be used to assess the strength of evidence of the data included. Stata statistical software will be used for qualitative and quantitative synthesis. A protocol was developed and published in PROSPERO (CRD42021265630). The search strategy retrieved 2,791 articles and the gray literature search retrieved 200 records. Of these, 35 articles will be read in full and then only those that meet the eligibility criteria will be included in the review. It is therefore hoped that this SR will make it possible to evaluate the potential of podocyte-specific proteins as biomarkers for the early diagnosis and accurate assessment of glomerular lesions in patients with kidney disease.