Safety and efficacy of sodium oligomannate in patients with Alzheimer’s disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background We aim to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a new marine oligosaccharide drug, sodium oligomannate (GV-971), developed in China to treat Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Methods We researched the following databases: Embase, Web of Science, PubMed, Cochrane library, and Scopus until Sep 2022. We used the Cochrane risk of bias tool to assess the risk of bias and the GRADE scale to assess the quality of the evidence. The meta-analysis was performed using review manager 5.4. Results We included three randomized controlled trials with 1108 patients. Sodium oligomannate improved the AD assessment scale-cognitive subscale compared to the placebo at 12, 24, and 36 weeks (mean difference (MD) = − 0.69, 95% confidence interval (CI) [− 1.23 to − 0.14], p = 0.01), (MD = − 0.68, 95% CI [− 1.26 to − 0.10], P = 0.02), and (MD = − 3.84, 95% CI [− 6.40 to − 1.27], and P = 0.003), respectively. On the other hand, results showed no significance in terms of adverse events and other assessed scales (Clinician’s Interview-Based Impression of Change with caregiver input, AD Cooperative Study-Activities of Daily Living, and Neuropsychiatric Inventory) ( p > 0.05). Conclusions Sodium oligomannate is a well-tolerated and promising drug for Alzheimer’s patients. However, to better evaluate sodium oligomannate’s efficacy in the clinical setting, we need more randomized controlled trials with larger samples and higher quality.