These tools will no longer be maintained as of December 31, 2024. Archived website can be found here. PubMed4Hh GitHub repository can be found here. Contact NLM Customer Service if you have questions.


Pubmed for Handhelds

PUBMED FOR HANDHELDS

Search MEDLINE/PubMed

  • Title: The effects of repeat doses of antenatal corticosteroids on maternal adrenal function.
    Author: McKenna DS, Wittber GM, Nagaraja HN, Samuels P.
    Journal: Am J Obstet Gynecol; 2000 Sep; 183(3):669-73. PubMed ID: 10992191.
    Abstract:
    OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine whether repeated doses of maternal corticosteroids suppress the maternal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. STUDY DESIGN: The low-dose corticotropin stimulation test (1.0 microg intravenously) was administered a median of 3 days after the last betamethasone dose to 18 pregnant women who had received at least 2 weekly courses of antenatal betamethasone and to 6 control subjects matched for gestational age who had not received antenatal corticosteroids. RESULTS: The mean basal cortisol level was significantly depressed among women who had received betamethasone with respect to control subjects (1.9 +/- 1.5 vs 26.5 +/- 6.2 microg/dL; P <.001). The maternal cortisol level after corticotropin stimulation was significantly lower in all women who had received betamethasone (P <. 001). The mean time to attainment of peak cortisol level was significantly longer among women who had received betamethasone than among control subjects (37 +/- 6.8 vs 27.4 +/- 1.6 minutes; P <.001). CONCLUSIONS: Repeated courses of betamethasone lead to barely detectable maternal basal cortisol levels and secondary adrenal insufficiency.
    [Abstract] [Full Text] [Related] [New Search]