| TOPIC OF THE ISSUE: ORIGINAL ARTICLE |
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| Year : 2010 | Volume
: 58
| Issue : 5 | Page : 723--726 |
Duration of anti-tubercular treatment in tuberculous meningitis: Challenges and opportunity
Kameshwar Prasad, Jitendra Kumar Sahu
Department of Neurology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
Correspondence Address:
Kameshwar Prasad
Professor of Neurology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi - 110 029
India
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/0028-3886.72182
Background: The duration of anti-tuberculous therapy in tuberculous meningitis is controversial. There is variation in recommendations by different societies and expert groups on this issue. Objective: To determine the strength of evidence for short-term therapy in tuberculous meningitis through review of literature and critical appraisal. Materials and Methods: Cochrane CENTRAL (Issue 4, 2010), TRIP database, and PubMed (from 1966 to present) were searched for relevant papers with keywords 'meningeal tuberculosis' and tuberculous meningitis' combined with 'chemotherapy'. A critical appraisal of a systematic review was done using standard criteria. Results: A total of 10 relevant papers were identified. All papers were included in a systematic review. The systematic review did not specify study design of studies to be included, had only case series but no randomised controlled trial, and unclear definition of endpoints. Conclusions: The evidence base for short-term therapy for tuberculous meningitis is weak. There is a need to conduct a randomised controlled trial with non-inferiority hypothesis of adequate sample size with well-defined end points and adequate follow-up. This is a challenge as well as opportunity for Indian neurologists.
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