Safety and Efficacy of Fludrocortisone in the Treatment of Cerebral Salt Wasting in Patients With Tuberculous Meningitis A Randomized Clinical Trial

IMPORTANCE Tuberculous meningitis is associated with high frequency of cerebral salt wasting. There is a paucity of objective information regarding the best method of treatment of this condition. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the efficacy and safety of fludrocortisone in the treatment of cerebral salt wasting in patients with tuberculous meningitis. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This is a single-center, open-label, randomized clinical trial conducted from October 2015 to April 2017 in India. Patients were randomized in a 1:1 ratio to arms receiving saline only or saline plus fludrocortisone, in addition to a standard treatment of 4 antitubercular drugs, prednisolone, and aspirin. The 2 arms were matched for demographic, clinical, and magnetic resonance imaging findings. The patients were followed up for at least 6 months. INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomized to a 0.9% solution of intravenous saline with 5 to 12 g per day of oral salt supplementation, with or without the addition of 0.1 to 0.4 mg of fludrocortisone per day. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary end point was the time needed to correct serum sodium levels; secondary end points were in-hospital deaths, disability at 3 months, disability at 6 months, occurence of stroke, and serious adverse reactions. RESULTS Ninety-three patients with suspected tuberculous meningitis were recruited; 12 did not meet the inclusion criteria, including 4 with alternate diagnoses. A total of 37 patients with cerebral salt wasting were eligible for the study. One refused to participate, and therefore 36 patients were included, with 18 randomized to each group. The median (range) age was 30 (20-46) years, and 19 were male (52.8%). Those receiving fludrocortisone regained normal serum sodium levels after 4 days, significantly earlier than those receiving saline only (15 days; P = .004). In an intention-to-treat analysis, hospital mortality, disability at 3 months, and disability at 6 months did not differ significantly, but fewer infarcts occurred in the deep border zone in the group receiving fludrocortisone (1 of 18 [6%]) vs those in the control arm (6 of 18 [33%]; P = .04). Fludrocortisone was associated with severe hypokalemia and hypertension in 2 patients each, and pulmonary edema occurred in 1 patient. These adverse reactions necessitated discontinuation of fludrocortisone in 2 patients. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Fludrocortisone results in earlier normalization of serum sodium levels, but did not affect outcomes at 6 months. Fludrocortisone had to be withdrawn in 2 patients because of severe adverse effects. This study provides class II evidence on the role of fludrocortisone in treatment of hyponatremia associated with cerebral salt wasting in patients with tuberculous meningitis.