Objective: The role of glucose-insulin-potassium (GIK) infusion during cardiac surgery has held interest for so many years without a clear answer. The aim of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the effect of GIK therapy on outcomes in patients undergoing on-pump cardiac surgery.

Methods: A comprehensive online review was performed in The Web of Science, Embase, Medline, PubMed, and The Cochrane Library databases from 2000 to 2019. Eligible studies included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that compared GIK treatment with placebo or standard care during on-pump cardiac surgery. Risk ratios (RR) were used for binary outcomes and mean difference (MD) was used for continuous variables; both with their 95% confidence intervals (CI).

Results: A total of 18 RCTs involving 2,131 patients met the inclusion criteria. Compared with the control group, the GIK treatment significantly reduced in-hospital mortality (RR= 0.56, 95% CI: 0.32–0.97; P=. 04), postoperative myocardial infarctions (MI)(RR= 0.71, 95% CI: 0.56–0.91; P=. 006), the use of inotropic support (RR= 0.53, 95% CI: 0.45–0.63; P<. 00001), and length of stay in the intensive care unit (ICU)(MD=-0.33, 95% CI:-0.52–-0.14; P=. 0007). Moreover, GIK treatment seemed to be associated with fewer postoperative atrial fibrillation (AF)(RR= 0.81, 95% CI: 0.64–1.03; P=. 09).

Conclusions: In patients undergoing on-pump cardiac surgery, GIK infusion has a beneficial role in mortality during hospital stay and demonstrates superior efficacy versus standard care for reduction in postoperative MI, AF, ICU length of stay as well as inotropic agent requirements.