Multiple courses of antenatal glucocorticoid treatment and fetal outcome
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Thierry Lacaze-Masmonteil
Abstract
Thanks to the US National Institutes of Health Consensus Conference, the odds of antenatal use of glucocorticoids for preventing severe neonatal complications of premature delivery have significantly increased these last years. The belief that neonatal benefits last up to 7 days after the first course and administration of further courses is safe has led many obstetricians to prescribe multiple antenatal glucocorticoid courses. Whether multiple courses offer an advantage over a single course has not been demonstrated. In contrast, there are accumulating evidence suggesting that this practice may have short and long-term side effects. The potential benefits and side effects of multiple antenatal courses of glucocorticoids, extrapolated from experimental data and observational studies, are detailed in this review. Until the results of ongoing randomized trials with long term follow-up are available, the practice of giving multiple courses of glucocorticoids to women should be considered with the greatest caution.
Copyright (c)2000 by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co. KG
Articles in the same Issue
- Cesarean section for all twins?
- The effects of childbirth on the pelvic-floor
- Multiple courses of antenatal glucocorticoid treatment and fetal outcome
- Three-dimensional sonography in prenatal diagnosis: a luxury or a necessity?
- Does preeclampsia influence fetal lung maturity?
- Transvaginal volumetry of first trimester gestational sac: A comparison of conventional with three-dimensional ultrasound
- Effect of high amniotic fluid pressure on fetal circulation
- Bioelectrical impedance analysis in the clinical management of a pregnant woman undergoing dialysis
- Comparison of the relaxation effect in vitro of nitroglycerin vs. fenoterol on human myometrial strips
Articles in the same Issue
- Cesarean section for all twins?
- The effects of childbirth on the pelvic-floor
- Multiple courses of antenatal glucocorticoid treatment and fetal outcome
- Three-dimensional sonography in prenatal diagnosis: a luxury or a necessity?
- Does preeclampsia influence fetal lung maturity?
- Transvaginal volumetry of first trimester gestational sac: A comparison of conventional with three-dimensional ultrasound
- Effect of high amniotic fluid pressure on fetal circulation
- Bioelectrical impedance analysis in the clinical management of a pregnant woman undergoing dialysis
- Comparison of the relaxation effect in vitro of nitroglycerin vs. fenoterol on human myometrial strips
