Objective  To systematically evaluate the effects of colchicine on the levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and other inflammatory markers in patients with coronary atherosclerotic heart disease (CHD).

Methods  PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, ClinicalTrials.gov, CNKI, WanFang Data and VIP databases were electronically searched to collect randomized controlled trials (RCTs) related to research objectives from inception June 13, 2025. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data and assessed the risk of bias of the included studies. Meta-analysis was then performed by using RevMan 5.3 software.

Results  A total of 12 RCTs involving 6,351 patients were included. The results of the Meta-analysis showed that compared with placebo, colchicine treatment could decrease hs-CRP levels [MD=-0.73, 95%CI (-0.89, -0.56), P<0.001] and incidence of major adverse coronary events (MACE) [RR=0.76, 95%CI (0.63, 0.91), P=0.003]. However, no statistically significant differences were observed between the colchicine group and placebo group in white blood cell count, neutrophil count, interleukin-1β, or interleukin-6 levels (P>0.05).

Conclusion  Colchicine therapy may reduce hs-CRP levels and lower the risk of MACE in patients with CHD. The above conclusions are limited by the quantity and quality of included studies and need to be verified by more high-quality research.

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