The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 276 No 7405 p711
17 June 2006

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Antenatal steroids a dilemma

Recommendations from a recent study of repeat versus single doses of antenatal corticosteroids, published in The Lancet last week (2006;367:1913), have been called into question by the authors of an editorial in the same issue (ibid, p1878).

The study authors conclude that fewer babies exposed to repeat doses of antenatal corticosteroid experience respiratory distress syndrome (relative risk 0.82, 95 per cent confidence interval 0.71–0.95; P=0.01) and severe lung disease (0.60, CI 0.46–0.79; P=0.0003) than those who receive a single dose. However, the authors of the editorial suggest that data from long-term follow-up studies are needed — in light of earlier concerns of adverse neurological development — before the use of repeat antenatal corticosteroids can be endorsed as routine practice.