| Summary: | Abstract Background Several randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have compared the treatment of acute lung injury (ALI) with omega-3 fatty, yet the results remained inconsistent. Therefore, we attempted this meta-analysis to analyze the role of omega-3 fatty in the treatment of ALI patients. Methods We searched PubMed databases from inception date to October 31, 2019, for RCTs that compared the treatment of ALI with or without omega-3 fatty. Two authors independently screened the studies and extracted data from the published articles. Summary mean differences (MD) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated for each outcome by fixed- or random-effects model. Results Six RCTs with a total of 277 patients were identified, of whom 142 patients with omega-3 fatty acid treatment and 135 patients without omega-3 fatty treatment. Omega-3 fatty treatments significantly improve the PaO2 (MD = 13.82, 95% CI 8.55–19.09), PaO2/FiO2 (MD = 33.47, 95% CI 24.22–42.72), total protein (MD = 2.02, 95% CI 0.43–3.62) in ALI patients, and omega-3 fatty acid treatments reduced the duration of mechanical ventilation (MD = − 1.72, 95% CI − 2.84 to − 0.60) and intensive care unit stay (MD = − 1.29, 95% CI − 2.14 to − 0.43) in ALI patients. Conclusions Omega-3 fatty can effectively improve the respiratory function and promote the recovery of ALI patients. Future studies focused on the long-term efficacy and safety of omega-3 fatty use for ALI are needed.
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