Journal of Community Medicine & Health Education
Open Access

Research Article

The Impact of Type, Dosage and Time of Prenatal Steroid Administration on Neonatal Outcome

Zaręba-Szczudlik J^*, Dobrowolska-Redo A, Malinowska-Polubiec A and Romejko-Wolniewicz E

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical University of Warsaw, Poland

Corresponding Author:

Julia Zareba-Szczudlik, MD, PhD
Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology
Medical University of Warsaw
Karowa Street 2, 00-315 Warsaw, Poland
Tel: +48 607681717
Fax: +48 22 5966487
E-mail: juliaszmed@wp.pl

Received date: February 23, 2016; Accepted date: April 25, 2016; Published date: April 30, 2016

Citation: Zareba-Szczudlik J, Dobrowolska-Redo A, Malinowska-Polubiec A, Romejko-Wolniewicz E (2016) The Impact of Type, Dosage and Time of Prenatal Steroid Administration on Neonatal Outcome. J Community Med Health 6:423. doi:10.4172/2161-0711.1000423

Copyright: © 2016 Zaręba-Szczudlik J, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Background: In 1972, Liggins and Howie demonstrated that antenatal steroid administration reduced the incidence of respiratory distress syndrome and perinatal mortality in neonates. Since the publication of these findings, perinatal and long-term results of steroid therapy have been evaluated in numerous studies. The aim of the study was to compare the impact of prenatal steroid dosage on perinatal outcomes in neonates and in mothers.

Summary: Although the results of the studies are ambiguous, one should consider the potential benefits of dexamethasone in cases of risk of preterm delivery due to abnormalities in fetal health assessments. Dexamethasone may also lead to better results when preterm neonates are burdened with cardiovascular defects or diseases. The opposite holds true for abnormal flows within UA or fetal MCA, i.e., one should consider whether betamethasone is the appropriate drug of choice. Steroid treatment after 34 weeks of gestation is not beneficial. Administration of the full course of steroid treatment (24 mg) in lower single doses is probably more favorable for the mother. On the other hand, a shorter time interval between the doses may allow more women in preterm birth to receive the full course of steroids. Further studies are required to answer these questions, and better methods for predicting preterm birth should be determined.

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