Emerging role of corticosteroids in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Abstract

Airway inflammation is thought to play a part in the pathogenesis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and some patients seem to benefit from corticosteroid treatment. 1 Callahan CM Dittus RS Katz BP Oral corticosteroid therapy for patients with stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Ann Intern Med. 1991; 114: 216-223 Crossref PubMed Scopus (219) Google Scholar In stable COPD, corticosteroids are used to relieve symptoms, to prevent exacerbations, and to slow down the decline in lung function. In acute exacerbations, the aims of treatment are symptom relief, shorter hospital stays, and improved out comes. The effectiveness of corticosteroid treatment in achieving these goals has often been investigated but the results have been inconsistent, probably because of differences in study design, numbers of patients, and duration of treatment. To eliminate patients with asthma, some studies have excluded patients who respond to bronchodilators or to a short-term course of oral corticosteroids. There is thus no universal agreement on how and when corticosteroids should be used. Oral corticosteroids in patients admitted to hospital with exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a prospective randomised controlled trialThese data provide evidence to support the current practice of prescribing low-dose oral corticosteroids to all patients with non-acidotic exacerbations of COPD requiring hospital admission. Full-Text PDF