Abstract
Short-term, high-dose oral glucocorticoid therapy is often required for control of acute asthma episodes in children. To evaluate possible hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis suppression after such therapy, we studied 11 children with just asymptomatic asthma before and at 3 and 10 days after completion of a five-day course of prednisone (up to 2 mg/kg/day in divided doses, maximum dose = 60 mg/day). HPA axis responsiveness was tested by measuring plasma corticosteroid levels before and after insulin-induced hypoglycemia. When these levels were compared to pretreatment levels, there was a statistically significant blunting of the peak corticosteroid responses to hypoglycemia 3 days after completion of the course of prednisone (p < 0.001). However, corticosteroid responses were normal in all children 10 days after completion of the course of prednisone. We concluded that a single course of short-term, high-dose glucocorticoid therapy in children with asymptomatic asthma produces only transient (<10 days) HPA axis suppression.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 9-13 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| Journal | The Journal of allergy and clinical immunology |
| Volume | 77 |
| Issue number | 1 PART 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jan 1986 |
Funding
From the Department of Pediatrics, Mayo Graduate School of Med-icine, and the Allergic Diseases Research Laboratory, Mayo Clinic and Foundation, Rochester, Minn. Supported in part by Grant RR-585 from the National Institutes of Health and by Mayo Foundation. Received for publication Sept. 19, 1984. Accepted for publication May 20, 198.5. Reprint requests: J. W. Yunginger, M.D., Allergic Diseases Re-search Laboratory, 406 Guggenheim Building, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905. *Received a fellowship award from Ciba-Geigy for this study.
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Immunology and Allergy
- Immunology