Steroids for Henoch-Schönlein Purpura?

Early steroid use might prevent complications of Henoch-Schönlein purpura in hospitalized children.

The role of steroid therapy in patients with Henoch-Schönlein purpura is controversial, and treatment practices vary. Investigators retrospectively examined the effect of steroids on development of complications of new-onset Henoch-Schönlein purpura in 1895 hospitalized children (median age, 6 years) at 36 U.S. children's hospitals from 2000 through 2007.

Forty-two percent of children received steroids on day 1 or 2 of admission (early steroid use). In analyses that controlled for several demographic and clinical variables, early steroid use (compared with no use) was associated with significant reductions in the primary outcome — abdominal surgery (hazard ratio, 0.39) — and in four of seven secondary outcomes (need for endoscopy or abdomina…

Reviewing Author

Howard Bauchner, MD

Disclosures

Grant / research supportHuman Resources and Services Administration; NIH; NIH-NHLBI; USDA; GlaxoSmithKline

Editorial boardsArchives of Disease in Childhood (Editor-in-Chief)

Howard Bauchner, MD

Disclosures

Grant / research supportHuman Resources and Services Administration; NIH; NIH-NHLBI; USDA; GlaxoSmithKline

Editorial boardsArchives of Disease in Childhood (Editor-in-Chief)