Outcome | Meta-analysis | Other analysis | Conclusion | Quality of evidence |
---|---|---|---|---|
Weight change | No significant change in weight compared with placebo or anabolic steroids. | Compared with placebo, mean weight gain was positive in all included studies (significant in four). | Progesterone therapy is likely to cause a small increase in weight. | GRADE scale: moderate |
LBM | Insufficient data to compare with placebo. Comparison with anabolic steroids: no significant difference. | Five of the six studies where data were available reported an increase in mean LBM (significant in one). | Progesterone therapy may cause a small increase in LBM, but this is unlikely to be of any significant magnitude. | GRADE scale: low |
Appetite | Insufficient data. | All three studies where data were available reported significant improvement in appetite. Two others also reported significant results. | Progesterone therapy is likely to cause an improvement in appetite. | GRADE scale: low |
Muscle strength | No study measured this outcome. | Nil | There is no evidence to show progesterone therapy has any influence over muscle strength. | |
HRQOL | Insufficient data. | In all four studies, mean change in HRQOL measures was positive (but unclear is significantly so). | Progesterone therapy may cause some improvement in HRQOL measures. | GRADE scale: low |
Serum albumin | No significant change in serum albumin compared with placebo. | In five of the six studies where data were available, mean change in serum albumin was positive (only significant in one study). | Progesterone therapy may cause a small increase in serum albumin. | GRADE scale: low |
GRADE, Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluations; HRQOL, health-related quality of life; LBM, lean body mass.