Daoud 1999.

Methods	Quasi‐randomised clinical trial, conducted in Jordan between January 1993 and December 1995 Alternate allocation was used
Participants	52 full‐term neonates. Diagnosis of meningitis was suspected on the basis of clinical picture and CSF abnormalities: pleocytosis (> 30 leucocytes/mL), raised protein (> 100 mg/100 mL) and reduced CSF to blood sugar ratio < 0.5
Interventions	Dexamethasone administered at a dose of 0.15 mg per kg every 6 hours. Duration of administration was 4 days Control group did not receive placebo. Both groups were treated with cefotaxime Steroids were administered about 10 to 15 minutes before antibiotics
Outcomes	Number of all‐cause deaths until hospital discharge, number of infants with sensorineural deafness at two years of age, number of participants with developmental delay, number of participants with seizures at any time, number of participants with hydrocephalus
Notes	Ethical approval was obtained from the Jordan University of Science and Technology
Risk of bias
Bias	Authors' judgement	Support for judgement
Random sequence generation (selection bias)	High risk	Alternate allocation was used
Allocation concealment (selection bias)	Unclear risk	This was not reported
Blinding of participants and personnel (performance bias) All outcomes	Unclear risk	This was not reported
Blinding of outcome assessment (detection bias) All outcomes	Unclear risk	This was not reported
Incomplete outcome data (attrition bias) All outcomes	Low risk	Only 1 participant was lost to follow‐up; 9 were excluded afterwards, as they were thought to have aseptic meningitis
Selective reporting (reporting bias)	Low risk	We have no reason to think that investigators selectively reported outcomes
Other bias	Low risk	This study was funded by a government university grant