Antenatal steroid exposure and pulmonary outcomes in adolescents born with very low birth weight
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Updated: May 10, 2026

Assessment and Evaluation of the High Risk Neonate: The NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale
Published on: August 25, 2014
P A Nixon1, L K Washburn, T M O'Shea
11] Department of Health and Exercise Science, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, USA [2] Department of Pediatrics, Wake Forest University Health Sciences, Winston-Salem, NC, USA.
Objective:
To compare asthma history and pulmonary function in adolescents born prematurely with very low birth weight with and without antenatal steroid exposure.
Study Design:
We studied 188 fourteen-year olds (94 exposed, 84 male). We used parent report to ascertain asthma and asthma-related symptoms and spirometry to assess pulmonary function. Steroid-exposed and -unexposed groups were compared using Mann-Whitney U-tests (continuous variables), χ(2) analysis (categorical variables) and logistic regression (multivariate analyses).
Result:
The steroid-exposed group had greater prevalence of larger airway obstruction (35% vs 21%), and steroid-exposed adolescents with birth weights <1000 g had 4.5-fold higher odds of larger airway obstruction. Wheezing in the past 12 months was two times as prevalent in steroid-exposed adolescents with birth weights between 1000 and 1500 g.
Conclusion:
Antenatal steroid exposure does not provide long-term benefits for pulmonary outcomes in adolescents born prematurely with very low birth weight in the era of surfactant therapy.
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