Details of corticosteroid treatments given along with aciclovir treatment in the acute stage of herpes simplex virus encephalitis
| Difference between (A)and (B)* | ||
|---|---|---|
| *Statistical differences between the two different hospital groups were evaluated by Fisher’s exact probability test or the Mann-Whitney U test. | ||
| †(A) Nihon University Itabashi Hospital and two affiliated hospitals. | ||
| ‡(B) Tohoku University Hospital and two affiliated hospitals. | ||
| NS, not significant. | ||
| Patients given corticosteroids (n/N (%)) | 22/45 (49) | NS |
| (A)† 15/30 (50) | ||
| (B)‡ 7/15 (47) | ||
| Time of initiation of corticosteroid treatment | All patients were administered corticosteroid at the same time as the initiation of aciclovir treatment | |
| Type of corticosteroid (n/N (%)) | ||
| Dexamethasone | 18/22 (82) | NS |
| (A) 12/15 (80) | ||
| (B) 6/7 (86) | ||
| Prednisolone | 4/22 (18) | NS |
| (A) 3/15 (20) | ||
| (B) 1/7 (14) | ||
| Initial dosage of corticosteroid converted to dosage of | 64.6, 64.0 mg/day, 40.0–96.0 | NS |
| prednisolone (mean, median, distribution) | (A) 67.9, 64.0, 48.0–96.0 | |
| (B) 61.7, 64.0, 40.0–96.0 | ||
| Duration of corticosteroid treatment | 13.6, 6.0 days, 2.0–42.0 | NS |
| (mean, median, distribution) | (A) 13.9, 3.0, 3.0–42.0 | |
| (B) 12.0, 8.0, 2.0–35.0 | ||