What is the optimum time to start antiretroviral therapy in people with HIV and tuberculosis coinfection? A systematic review and meta-analysis.

ABSTRACT:

Background

HIV and tuberculosis are frequently diagnosed concurrently. In March 2021, World Health Organization recommended that antiretroviral therapy (ART) should be started within two weeks of tuberculosis treatment start, at any CD4 count. We assessed whether earlier ART improved outcomes in people with newly diagnosed HIV and tuberculosis.

Methods

We did a systematic review by searching nine databases for trials that compared earlier ART to later ART initiation in people with HIV and tuberculosis. We included studies published from database inception to 12 March 2021. We compared ART within four weeks versus ART more than four weeks after TB treatment, and ART within two weeks versus ART between two and eight weeks, and stratified analysis by CD4 count. The main outcome

SUBMITTER: Burke RM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8294654 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature