Drugs acting on the renin–angiotensin–aldosterone system (RAAS) and deaths of COVID-19 patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies

Abstract

Abstract Background Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEi) and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) are two of the most commonly used antihypertensive drugs acting on the renin–angiotensin–aldosterone system (RAAS). Previous research has shown that RAAS inhibitors increase the expression of angiotensin-converting enzyme, a cellular receptor for the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, raising concerns that the use of ACEi and ARBs in hypertensive patients may increase COVID-19 patient mortality. Therefore, the main aim of the current study was to find out the role of drugs acting on RAAS, particularly ACEi/ARBs in the deaths of COVID-19 patients. Results In total, 68 studies were found to be appropriate, reporting a total of 128,078 subjects. The odds ratio was found to be 1.14 [0.95, 1.36], which indicates the non-significant association of ACEi/ARBs with mortality of COVID-19 patients. Further, the association of individual ACEi/ARBs with mortality of COVID-19 patients was also found non-significant. The sensitivity analysis results have shown no significant effect of outliers on the outcome. Conclusions Based on available evidence, ACEi/ARB were not significantly associated with deaths of COVID-19 patients.