Adrenal suppression following intralesional corticosteroids for periocular haemangiomas.

BACKGROUND/AIMS Treatment with intralesional triamcinolone/betamethasone is recommended for infantile sight-threatening periocular haemangiomas. This study investigates the endocrine and weight changes in 15 infants undergoing therapy over 12 years. METHODS 15 infants, median age 19 weeks (range 10-56) receiving intra/perilesional triamcinolone/betamethasone underwent serial measurement of weight, early morning serum cortisol and adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) before and after injection. RESULTS Cortisol fell from a median (range) of 383 (112-594) to 28 (<10-506) nmol/l (p=0.005) and ACTH from 26 (14-134) to 9 (5-20) ng/l (p=0.05) from before injection to 4 weeks after treatment. Prolonged adrenal suppression occurred in 13 out of 15 cases with time to recovery being 19.5 (4-65) weeks. Failure to gain weight appropriately was observed in 14 infants but recovered once normal adrenal function was re-established. CONCLUSION Prolonged adrenal suppression following triamcinolone/betamethasone injection for periocular haemangiomas is common and associated with faltering weight gain.