Studies regarding impact of dosing intermittency on treatment efficacy in childhood tuberculosis
| Authors, year of publication | Measures of treatment efficacy | Source of study materials | Study design | Main findings | Strengths | Weaknesses | Risk of bias |
| Menon et al, 201048 | Cure | India, South Africa, Turkey | Systematic review and meta-analysis* | By per protocol analysis, children treated intermittently were less likely to be cured than those treated daily (OR 0.27, 95% CI 0.14 to 0.51). By intention to treat analysis, findings were similar but statistically non-significant (OR 0.66, 95% CI 0.23 to 1.84). Twice-weekly TB treatment may be less efficacious than daily treatment in terms of cure rates for children. | The study clearly addressed a focused question with good coverage on methodology and assessment of study quality. Literature search was sufficiently rigorous. Statistical tests showed no evidence of significant heterogeneity. | Studies lacked uniformity in diagnosis and assessment of outcome. | Low |
↵* Articles identified by the literature search and included in systematic reviews identified by the current review are shown in appendix 3 in the online supplement.
TB, tuberculosis.