Prophylactic intravenous antifungal agents to prevent mortality and morbidity in very low birth weight infants.
BACKGROUND
Invasive fungal infection is an increasingly common cause of mortality and morbidity in very low birth weight infants. As the diagnosis is often difficult, and treatment is often delayed, there is a need to assess whether antifungal prophylaxis is beneficial.


OBJECTIVE
To assess whether prophylactic intravenous antifungal therapy reduces mortality and adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes in very low birth weight infants.


METHODS
We used the standard search strategy of the Cochrane Neonatal Review Group. This included searches of the Cochrane Controlled Trials Register (The Cochrane Library, Issue 3, 2002), MEDLINE (1966 - September 2002), EMBASE (1980 - September 2002), conference proceedings, and previous reviews.


METHODS
Randomised controlled trials that compared the effect of prophylactic intravenous antifungal therapy versus placebo, or no drug, or another antifungal agent, in very low birth weight infants.


METHODS
We extracted the data using the standard methods of the Cochrane Neonatal Review Group, with separate evaluation of trial quality and data extraction by each author, and synthesis of data using relative risk and risk difference. The pre-specified outcomes were death prior to hospital discharge, longer term neurodevelopment, incidence of invasive fungal infection, emergence of antifungal resistance, and adverse drug reactions.


RESULTS
We identified two eligible trials enrolling a total of 203 infants. Both trials compared the effect of prophylactic intravenous fluconazole versus placebo. 29 of the infants recruited to the two studies died. Meta-analysis revealed a statistically significantly reduced risk of death prior to hospital discharge for the infants who received fluconazole prophylaxis: typical relative risk: 0.44 (95% confidence interval 0.21, 0.91); typical risk difference: -0.11 (95% confidence interval -0.21, -0.02); number needed to treat: 9 (95% confidence interval 5, 50). There were not any data on longer term outcomes.


CONCLUSIONS
We have found some evidence that prophylactic intravenous fluconazole reduces mortality prior to hospital discharge in very low birth weight infants. The meta-analysis suggests that there will be one fewer death in every nine infants treated with this intervention, but the 95% confidence interval around this estimate of effect is wide. The longer term neurodevelopmental consequences for infants exposed to this intervention remain to be determined. It will be important to identify any subgroups of very low birth weight infants that receive the most benefit from this intervention. There is also a need for further data on the effect of the intervention on the emergence of organisms with stable antifungal resistance.
McGuire
W
W
Tayside Institute of Child Health, Ninewells Hospital and Medical School, Dundee, UK, DD1 9SY. w.mcguire@dundee.ac.uk
Clerihew
L
L
Austin
N
N
D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002658:Developmental Disabilities / Q000517:prevention & control; D015725:Fluconazole / Q000627:therapeutic use; D017052:Hospital Mortality; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D019102:Infant, Very Low Birth Weight; D009181:Mycoses / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality / Q000517:prevention & control; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
D000935:Antifungal Agents; D015725:Fluconazole