Active clinical trials for "Tuberculosis, Meningeal"

The optimal time to initiate antiretroviral therapy (ART) in HIV-associated tuberculous meningitis (TBM) unknown. There are concerns that immediate ART may worsen rather than improve outcome, because drug interactiond and toxicities or development of an intracerebral immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS). Conversely, delaying ART may result in increased HIV-related deaths. To answer this question, we are conducting a randomised, double-blind placebo-controlled trial comparing immediate and deferred ART in HIV-infected patients presenting with TBM, to assess effect on survival.

The study aimed to evaluate the relationships between the gene polymorphisms of leukotriene A4 hydrolase(LTA4H) and Dexamethasone treatment for tuberculous meningitis in Chinese patients.

Early and reliable diagnosis of tuberculous meningitis (TBM) still poses a great challenge. One of the underlying difficulties is due to the fact that tubercle bacilli are mainly not present in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) but in the phagocytotic macrophages. The present study was designed to demonstrate early secretory antigenic target 6 (ESAT-6), a mycobacterium-specific antigens, in the macrophages in infected CSF samples and compare the efficiency of this antigen in the laboratory diagnosis of TBM.

All patients who were alive at the end of the dexamethasone treatment trial conducted by Oxford University CLinical Research Unit from 2001-2005 (n=340) will be eligible to participate in this long-term follow-up study. All eligible and consenting patients will undergo an assesment consisting of a simple questionnaire, a clinical examination and a blood test. Data collected will focus on survival, neurological disability and tuberculosis relapse. Data will be collected in individual case record forms and entered into a computer database.

Tuberculous meningitis (TBM) is the most serious form of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection, causing mortality and disability in more than half of the patients. Current standard treatment for TBM is based on those developed to treat pulmonary tuberculosis, which does not take into account the differential ability of anti-tuberculosis drugs to penetrate the brain. With both good central nervous system penetrance and anti-tuberculosis efficacy that have been demonstrated in drug-resistant tuberculosis, linezolid may be a promising antimicrobial in TBM treatment. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of linezolid in the treatment of TBM.