SynthesisJournal of neurology2023
Steroids for the treatment of viral encephalitis: a systematic literature review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Journal of neurology, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 25 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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
25 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 37 citations in OpenAlex.
- Clinical and Laboratory Predictors of Poor Neurological Outcomes Following Infectious Encephalitis: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.European journal of neurology · 2025Pooled it
- Clinical management of contrast-induced neurotoxicity: a systematic review.Acta neurologica Belgica · 2024Pooled it
- Difficulties in the Diagnostics and Treatment of Hashimoto's Encephalopathy-A Systematic and Critical Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2024Pooled it
- Measles: A Narrative Review of Current Therapeutic Options and Implications for the Future.Viruses · 2026Review
- West Nile Neuroinvasive Disease: Current Management, Emerging Therapies and Future Clinical Trial Priorities.Reviews in medical virology · 2026Review
- Neuroinvasive eastern equine encephalitis in a previously healthy 56-year-old woman.CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association journal = journal de l'Association medicale canadienne · 2026Article
- Clinical epidemiology, determinants, and outcomes of severe viral encephalitis in Chinese children: a multicenter retrospective cohort study.BMC infectious diseases · 2026Article
- The Impact of Corticosteroid Therapy on Patients With West Nile Virus: A Retrospective Cohort Study.The Journal of infectious diseases · 2026Article
- Article
- Role for NF-κB in herpes encephalitis pathology in mice genocopying an inborn error of IRF3-IFN immunity.The Journal of experimental medicine · 2026Article
- West Nile virus neuroinvasive disease and cardiac involvement in critically ill patients in central Italy: a case series.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Article
- Severe Usutu Virus Encephalitis Treated With Corticosteroids: A Case Report.Case reports in infectious diseases · 2026Article
- Human herpesvirus 7 induced aseptic meningitis in an immunocompetent adult presenting with unusual neurological symptoms: a case report.Virology journal · 2025Article
- [Value of monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in evaluating the severity and prognosis of pediatric viral encephalitis].Zhongguo dang dai er ke za zhi = Chinese journal of contemporary pediatrics · 2025Article
- Varicella Zoster Virus Encephalitis with Advanced Human Immunodeficiency Virus Disease Diagnosed by Brain Biopsy.Internal medicine (Tokyo, Japan) · 2025Article
- Triggers of viral encephalitis: a brain teaser to be solved!Annals of intensive care · 2025Article
- Article
- Article
- Risk factors for secondary epilepsy in children with viral encephalitis.American journal of translational research · 2025Article
- The Role of Corticosteroids in Non-Bacterial and Secondary Encephalitis.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundSpecific antiviral treatment is only available for a small subset of viral encephalitis (VE). Adjunctive steroids are used, but there is scant evidence evaluating its utility. We present a systematic review and meta-analysis on the outcome of steroid use in VE.
methodsWe conducted a systematic literature review and reported it according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) standards. Two observational studies from unpublished or partially published data were added. For the meta-analysis, we employed the metaphor package of the statistical software R-4.3.1.
resultsWe screened 378 studies and included 50. 155 patients were added from the Houston and Linz cohorts. Individual data were available for 281 persons, 120 (43%) of whom received steroids. The most common pathogens were herpes simplex virus 1, West Nile virus, and measles. Study designs and patient outcomes were heterogeneous. Only three of the trials report an advantage of steroid therapy. Steroid-induced side effects were scarce. Ten cohorts were included into the meta-analysis. For the pooled data, the null hypothesis could not be rejected (p = 0.245) using a random effects model, i.e., a benefit of steroid treatment on survival in VE could not be shown.
conclusionsSteroids as potent anti-inflammatory agents may act through a reduction of secondary inflammation-mediated damage. Our data do not support the use of steroids in VE. However, multiple shortcomings apply. Standardized controlled trials are needed to investigate optimal dosing and timing of steroid administration and to explore potential subgroups that could benefit.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.