1. Cohort studies evaluating time to ART initiation in cryptococcal meningitis.
| Trial ID | Design | Location | Definitions | Study period | Duration of follow‐up | Mortality | Trial conclusions | ||
|
Early (n/N) |
Late (n/N) |
Association | |||||||
| Manosuthi 2008 | Retrospective cohort | Thailand | Early < 1 month; late ≥ 1 month | 2002 to 2006 | 1050 patient years | 9/52 | 46/229 | Adjusted HR 0.833 (95% CI 0.379 to 1.831) | No difference, however underpowered and risks of selection bias and unmeasured confounders |
| Crabtree Ramírez 2017 | Retrospective cohort | USA and Latin America | Early < 2 weeks; late 2 to 8 weeks | 1985 to 2014 | Unknown | 7/24 | 14/53 | Adjusted OR 1.09 (95% CI 0.44 to 2.67) | No difference, however underpowered and risks of selection bias and unmeasured confounders |
| Ingle 2015 | Retrospective cohort (conference abstract) | North America | Early ≤ 14 days; late 14 to 56 days since cryptococcal meningitis diagnosis | 1998 to 2009 | Unknown | 7/62 | 7/67 | Crude HR 1.29 (0.68 to 2.43) and adjusted HR 1.30 (0.66 to 2.55) | No association between timing and mortality, however unmeasured confounders and selection bias an issue. Low power to detect a difference |
Abbreviations: ART: antiretroviral therapy; CI: confidence interval; HR: hazard ratio; OR: odds ratio