Mortality in Patients with Bullous Pemphigoid: A Retrospective Cohort Study, Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

There is little consensus regarding mortality data in bullous pemphigoid (BP). The aim of this study was to evaluate mortality among a relatively large cohort of Israeli patients with BP and to perform a meta-analysis synthesizing existing data on 1-year mortality rates of patients with BP. This retrospective cohort study of 287 patients diagnosed with BP between 2000 and 2015 compared the mortality of patients with BP with age- and sex-matched control subjects in the general population. The results showed 1-, 5- and 10-year mortality rates of 26.9%, 56.9% and 69.5%, respectively, and a 3.4-fold higher risk of death. A systematic review and meta-analysis were then performed using a random effects model. Including the current study, 25 studies comprising 4,594 patients met the eligibility criteria. The pooled estimate of 1-year mortality rate was 23.5% (95% confidence interval 20.2–26.8; I2=81%; p < 0.001). The pooled 1-year mortality rate of European cohorts was prominently higher relative to the pooled rates of cohorts from the USA and Asia.