Background/Aims: The adverse events associated with endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients undergoing hemodialysis (HD) have not been sufficiently evaluated. This study aimed to review the morbidity and mortality associated with ERCP in ESRD patients on HD using a systematic review and pooled analysis. Methods: A systematic review and pooled analysis were conducted on studies that evaluated the clinical outcomes of ERCP in patients on HD. Random-effect model meta-analyses with subgroup analyses were conducted. The methodological quality of the included publications was evaluated using the risk of bias assessment tool for nonrandomized studies. The publication bias was assessed. Results: A total of 239 studies were identified, and 12 studies comprising 7921 HD patients were included in the analysis. The pooled estimated frequency of bleeding associated with ERCP in HD patients was 5.8% (460/7921). In the subgroup analysis of seven comparative studies, the ERCP-related bleeding rate was significantly higher in HD patients than in non-HD patients (5.5% (414/7544) vs. 1.5% (6734/456,833), OR 3.84; 95% CI 4.26−25.5; p < 0.001). The pooled frequency of post-ERCP pancreatitis was 8.3%. The pooled frequency of bowel perforation was 0.3%. The pooled estimated mortality associated with ERCP was 7.1% The publication bias was minimal. Conclusion: This pooled analysis showed that ERCP-related morbidity and mortality are higher in HD patients than in non-dialysis patients.
Keywords: adverse events; end-stage renal disease; endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography; hemodialysis; systematic review.