Efficacy and Safety of Adjunctive Corticosteroids in Non-HIV Pneumocystis jirovecii Pneumonia with Respiratory Failure: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized and Observational Studies
Abstract
Background: Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia in HIV-negative immunocompromised patients carries a mortality rate significantly higher than in the HIV-positive population. While adjunctive corticosteroids are the standard of care for HIV-associated pneumonia to prevent Immune Reconstitution Inflammatory Syndrome, their efficacy in non-HIV patients remains controversial due to differing immunopathogenesis. This study evaluated the efficacy and safety of adjunctive corticosteroids in non-HIV patients with respiratory failure, specifically addressing the discordance between historical observational data and recent randomized evidence.
Methods: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis in accordance with PRISMA guidelines, searching databases from January 2014 to July 2025. We included randomized controlled trials and observational studies of non-HIV adults with pneumonia receiving adjunctive corticosteroids. To address methodological heterogeneity, we performed stratified analyses separating randomized trial data from observational cohorts and conducted sensitivity analyses to account for outliers. Risk of bias was assessed using Cochrane RoB-2 and the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale.
Results: Ten studies comprising 2,900 patients were analyzed. The randomized trial demonstrated no statistically significant reduction in 28-day mortality with corticosteroids (21.5% vs 32.4%, p=0.069). In the observational arm, initial pooled analysis suggested benefit, but sensitivity analysis…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a meta-analysis, done in people. Its evidence level is 1 of 5 (Highest · pooled evidence). Pooled evidence from several studies sits at the top of the evidence pyramid. Reported size: 2,900 participants or records.
Read the paper
Related studies
- Penicillins for Treatment of Pneumococcal Pneumonia: Does In Vitro Resistance Really Matter?
- Thiophenes—Naturally Occurring Plant Metabolites: Biological Activities and In Silico Evaluation of Their Potential as Cathepsin D Inhibitors
- Inhalable Mannosylated Rifampicin–Curcumin Co-Loaded Nanomicelles with Enhanced In Vitro Antimicrobial Efficacy for an Optimized Pulmonary Tuberculosis Therapy
- Development and validation of microbial bioassay for quantification of Levofloxacin in pharmaceutical preparations
- GC-MS Analysis and Biomedical Therapy of Oil from n-Hexane Fraction of Scutellaria edelbergii Rech. f.: In Vitro, In Vivo, and In Silico Approach
- Propranolol, chlorpromazine and diclofenac restore susceptibility of extensively drug-resistant (XDR)-Acinetobacter baumannii to fluoroquinolones
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.