ArticleItalian journal of pediatrics2012
Should a hospitalized child receive empiric treatment with acyclovir?
Article in Italian journal of pediatrics, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed, 3 citations in OpenAlex.
- Update on Viral Infections Involving the Central Nervous System in Pediatric Patients.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Review
- Encephalitis diagnosis using metagenomics: application of next generation sequencing for undiagnosed cases.The Journal of infection · 2018Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundHerpes simplex encephalitis is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality and may be related to timely diagnosis and treatment. While awaiting the results of testing, hospitalization and empiric treatment with acyclovir is recommended, though the direct and indirect costs associated with this management are substantial. We sought to examine children hospitalized for possible herpes simplex encephalitis, following clinical and laboratory assessment in the emergency department, and empiric treatment with acyclovir, in order to describe the proportion receiving a complete course of treatment; and to identify the clinical variables which are associated with receiving a complete course, as compared with an incomplete course of acyclovir.
methodsHospitalized children prescribed acyclovir were included in this case control study. Clinical, laboratory and diagnostic variables were abstracted for children prescribed a complete (≥ 14 days) or an incomplete course (<14 days) of acyclovir. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated.
results289 children met eligibility criteria, 30 (10%) received a complete course and 259 (90%) received an incomplete course. A history of mucocutaneous herpes simplex virus infection (p < 0.01), Glasgow Coma Scale ≤ 13 (p = 0.02), focal neurologic findings (p = 0.001) and elevated cerebrospinal fluid white blood cell count (p = 0.05) were associated with a complete course of acyclovir.
conclusionsMany children did not complete a full course of therapy. Unnecessary testing and treatment is burdensome to families and the health care system. Possible predictive variables include abnormal Glascow Coma Scale, focal neurologic findings and cerebrospinal fluid pleocytosis.
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Registered trials
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