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Systematic review and meta-analysis of intraventricular antibiotics for neonatal meningitis and ventriculitis
Doriam Alejandrino Perera Valdivia1, Edgar Abraham Herrera Pérez2, Luis Roberto Zapata Vega2
1Neurosurgery Department, Military Hospital "Dr Alejandro Dávila Bolaños", Managua, Nicaragua. pereravaldivia@gmail.com.
Insights
Intraventricular antibiotics in neonates show low-certainty evidence for impacting mortality in meningitis and ventriculitis. However, a minimum 3-day duration may reduce mortality, especially for resistant infections.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal Medicine
- Infectious Diseases
- Pharmacology
Background:
- Neonatal meningitis and ventriculitis pose significant risks.
- Intraventricular antibiotics are a potential treatment but require evidence evaluation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the safety and effectiveness of intraventricular antibiotics in neonates with meningitis/ventriculitis.
- To analyze the existing evidence quality for this treatment approach.
Main Methods:
- Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized experimental and observational studies.
- Searched PubMed, EMBASE, LILACS, and SCOPUS databases up to February 2023.
- Utilized Cochrane methodology for systematic review standards.
Main Results:
- Included 272 patients from 26 observational studies and 1 RCT; evidence quality was low (Level C).
- No significant mortality difference found between intraventricular and systemic antibiotics alone (25.4% vs 16.1%).
- A minimum 3-day intraventricular antibiotic course showed reduced mortality (4.3% vs 17%) compared to systemic alone.
Conclusions:
- Low-certainty evidence suggests intraventricular antibiotics may not significantly alter mortality in neonatal meningitis/ventriculitis.
- Reduced mortality observed with a minimum 3-day intraventricular antibiotic duration, particularly for resistant infections.
- Higher-quality studies are essential to establish definitive evidence and treatment guidelines.
Purpose:
We aimed to determine the safety and effectiveness of intraventricular antibiotics in neonates with meningitis and/or ventriculitis and analyze the quality of available evidence.
Methods:
DESIGN: Systematic review and meta-analysis.
Data Sources:
PubMed, EMBASE, LILACS, and SCOPUS up to 17 February 2023.
Eligibility Criteria For Selecting Studies:
Randomized experimental and observational studies were included. The Cochrane methodology was used for systematic reviews.
Results:
Twenty-six observational studies and one randomized clinical trial involving 272 patients were included. The risk of bias in both pediatric and neurosurgical studies was high, and the quality of evidence was low (evidence level C). In the pediatric studies, no significant differences in mortality were found between intraventricular antibiotics and only systemic antibiotic [25.4% vs 16.1%, OR = 0.96 (0.42-2.24), P = 0.93]. However, when analyzing the minimum administered doses, we found a lower mortality when a minimum duration of 3 days for intraventricular antibiotics was used compared to only systemic antibiotic [4.3% vs 17%, OR = 0.22 (0.07-0.72), P = 0.01]. In the neurosurgical studies, the use of intraventricular antibiotics in ventriculitis generally results in a mortality of 5% and a morbidity of 25%, which is lower than that in cases where intraventricular antibiotics were not used, with an average mortality of 37.3% and a morbidity of 50%.
Conclusion:
Considering the low quality of evidence in pediatric and neurosurgical studies, we can conclude with a low level of certainty that intraventricular antibiotics may not significantly impact mortality in neonatal meningitis and ventriculitis. However, reduced mortality was observed in cases treated with a minimum duration of 3 days of intraventricular antibiotic, particularly the multidrug-resistant or treatment-refractory infections. Higher-quality studies are needed to improve the quality of evidence and certainty regarding the use of intraventricular antibiotics for treating neonatal meningitis and ventriculitis.
