| Quality assessment | Summary of findings | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No of patients | Effect | Quality | |||||||||
| No of studies | Design | Limitations | Inconsistency | Indirectness | Imprecision | No empiric antibiotic | Empiric antibiotic ± placebo | Antibiotic & additional drug | Relative RR (95%CI) P value | Absolute effect | |
| Mortality Pizzo, et al., (1982) | |||||||||||
| 1 | randomised trial | v. serious limitations1 | N/A | no serious indirectness | serious imprecision2 | 5 | 5 | 2 | - | - | VERY LOW |
| Median time to defervescence (range). Pizzo, et al., (1982) | |||||||||||
| 1 | randomised trial | v. serious limitations1 | N/A | no serious indirectness | serious imprecision2 | 11 days (3-22 days) | 8 days (3-23 days) | 6 days (2-20 days) | - | - | VERY LOW |
| Mortality (within 30 days). EORTC International anti-microbial therapy co-operative group (1989) | |||||||||||
| 1 | randomised trial | serious limitations3 | N/A | no serious indirectness | serious imprecision4 | - | 14 | 11 | P=0.04 | - | VERY LOW |
| Median time to defervescence (95%CI). Cometta, et al., (2003) | |||||||||||
| 1 | randomised trial | no serious limitations | N/A | no serious indirectness | serious imprecision5 | - | 4.3 days (3.5-5.1 days) | 3.5 days (2.4-4.4 days) | P=0.75 | - | LOW |
| Mortality between days 14 and 31. Cometta, et al., (2003) | |||||||||||
| 1 | randomised trial | no serious limitations | N/A | no serious indirectness | serious imprecision5 | - | 8/79 | 4/86 | RR=0.46 (0.15-1.38) P=0.29 | - | LOW |
| Defervescence within 72 hours. Erjavec, et al., (2000) | |||||||||||
| 1 | randomised trial | serious limitations6 | N/A | no serious indirectness | serious imprecision4 | - | 27/58 | 25/56 | RR=0.96 (0.64-1.43) P=0.98 | - | VERY LOW |
| Mortality whilst aplastic. Erjavec, et al., (2000) | |||||||||||
| 1 | randomised trial | serious limitations6 | N/A | no serious indirectness | serious imprecision4 | - | 4/58 | 6/56 | RR=1.55 (0.49-4.98) P=0.70 | - | VERY LOW |
No mention of allocation concealment; randomisation method not discussed; blinding not apparent.
Very low patient numbers and/or event rates.
No mention of allocation concealment; randomisation method not discussed; blinding of assessment may have occurred but not of treatment.
Low patient numbers and/or event rates.
Low patient numbers and /or event rates. Trial terminated early.
No mention of allocation concealment, scant details of randomisation of treatment.
From: Subsequent Treatment: guideline chapter seven
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