Research Summary
In recent years, many studies have found that vitamin K is beneficial for wound healing. However, some research results appear to be in conflict. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of vitamin K on wound healing.
Methods:
We systematically and comprehensively searched the PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), VIP, and Wanfang electronic databases. RevMan 5.3 software was used to calculate the weighted mean difference (WMD) of 95% confidence interval (CI) for animal and cell groups to evaluate the effect of vitamin K on wound healing. Two researchers independently selected studies and used the Cochrane Collaboration tool to assess the risk of bias in the included studies. The overall quality of evidence was assessed using the Recommendation, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) working group approach.
Results:
Among the 1,081 articles searched, 6 articles (16 studies in total) met the inclusion criteria. The results of quantitative analysis showed that vitamin K was beneficial in increasing the wound healing rate in animal models [rat model: WMD = 27.45 (95% CI: 13.46, 41.44); p = 0.0001]. However, the opposite result was obtained in cell experiments [WMD = −33.84 (95% CI: −56.90, −10.79); p = 0.004].
Conclusion:
This meta-analysis suggests that vitamin K could influence the process of wound healing, particularly in animal models. However, its exact role remains unclear and requires further large-scale research. In addition, the concentration and safe dose of vitamin K also deserve further investigation.
Keywords:
Vitamin K, wound healing, wound, meta-analysis, systematic review.
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