Management and outcomes of intracranial fungal infections in children and adults in Africa: a scoping review protocol

Abstract

IntroductionThe protocol presents the methodology of a scoping review that aims to synthesise contemporary evidence on the management and outcomes of intracranial fungal infections in Africa.Methods and analysisThe scoping review will be conducted in accordance with the Arksey and O’Malley’s framework. The research question, inclusion and exclusion criteria and search strategy were developed based on the Population, Intervention, Comparator, Outcome framework. A search will be conducted in electronic bibliographic databases (Medline (OVID), Embase, African Journals Online, Cochrane Library and African Index Medicus). No restrictions on language or date of publication will be made. Quantitative and qualitative data extracted from included articles will be presented through descriptive statistics and a narrative description.Ethics and disseminationThis study protocol does not require ethical approval. Findings will be reported in a peer-reviewed medical journal and presented at local, regional, national and international conferences.