Guidance

Recommendations for research

Recommendations for research

The guideline committee has made the following recommendations for research.

1 Long-term outcomes of bacterial meningitis

What are the long-term outcomes after bacterial meningitis in infancy?

For a short explanation of why the committee made this recommendation for research and how it might affect practice, see the rationale section on identifying and managing complications.

Full details of the evidence and the committee's discussion are in evidence review I1: long-term complications and follow-up for bacterial meningitis.

2 Novel diagnostic techniques applied to blood or cerebrospinal fluid

Can novel host biomarker or metagenomic techniques applied to blood or cerebrospinal fluid be used to diagnose bacterial meningitis?

For a short explanation of why the committee made this recommendation for research and how it might affect practice, see the rationale section on cerebrospinal fluid investigations.

Full details of the evidence and the committee's discussion are in evidence review B3: investigating and diagnosing suspected bacterial meningitis with cerebrospinal fluid parameters.

3 Duration of antibiotic treatment for meningitis caused by Enterobacterales (coliforms)

What is the effectiveness of shorter courses of antibiotics (compared with standard duration courses) for treating bacterial meningitis caused by Enterobacterales (coliforms), particularly in newborn babies?

For a short explanation of why the committee made this recommendation for research and how it might affect practice, see the rationale section on antibiotics for bacterial meningitis in hospital when the causative organism is known.

Full details of the evidence and the committee's discussion are in evidence review E4: antibiotics for bacterial meningitis caused by gram-negative bacilli.

4 Intracranial pressure monitoring

In people with bacterial meningitis and impaired consciousness, are clinical outcomes improved if invasive and non-invasive intracranial pressure monitoring is used to guide treatment decisions?

For a short explanation of why the committee made this recommendation for research and how it might affect practice, see the rationale section on fluid restriction, osmotic agents and intracranial pressure monitoring for confirmed bacterial meningitis.

Full details of the evidence and the committee's discussion are in evidence review G3: intracranial pressure monitoring in bacterial meningitis.

5 Corticosteroids for newborn babies with bacterial meningitis

What is the effectiveness of corticosteroids as an adjunct to antibiotic treatment in newborn babies with suspected or confirmed bacterial meningitis?

For a short explanation of why the committee made this recommendation for research and how it might affect practice, see the rationale section on corticosteroids for bacterial meningitis and meningococcal disease.

Full details of the evidence and the committee's discussion are in evidence review G4: corticosteroids for treatment of bacterial meningitis.