Antenatal corticosteroids

Recurrent Courses of Antenatal Corticosteroids – Evidence Review

The first demonstrated benefits of antenatal steroids was in 1969 when a researcher, Graham Liggins discovered that lambs exposed to steroids prenatally survived longer that control lambs. Over the following years, several studies were conducted showing clear benefits from antenatal steroids use but concerns regarding their implementation meant that it took almost 30 years after evidence first ...

Guideline for the use of antenatal corticosteroids for fetal maturation.

The aim is to present a document, which is based on current evidence and serves as a guideline for use in clinical practice. The following questions are addressed: Is the use of antenatal corticosteroids (ACS) an effective therapy? Who are the candidates for antenatal corticosteroid therapy? Is there benefit after 34 weeks' gestation? When is the optimal time to treat? Which are the optimal ste...

Antenatal Corticosteroids to Reduce Neonatal Morbidity and Mortality

EVects of antenatal and postnatal corticosteroids on the preterm lung

It is nearly 25 years since Liggins and Howie first reported the maturational benefits of antenatal corticosteroids given to mothers of preterm infants. They reported reduced incidence of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in preterm infants delivered to mothers treated with antenatal steroids. Since then, several other studies have reported similar benefits for antenatal corticosteroids. Inde...

Antenatal corticosteroids to reduce preterm deaths in low - income settings

In their Comment (April issue), Kishwar Azad and Anthony Costello raise questions that should be answered before antenatal corticosteroid treatment is scaled up to reduce pre term deaths in low-income countries. We share their concerns about the unknown overall effect of this treatment on mortality and potential safety issues in the mother. To answer these questions, we have initiated the Anten...