Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 6, 2026

Intratracheal Instillation of Stem Cells in Term Neonatal Rats
Published on: May 4, 2020
Timing of antenatal corticosteroid administration and survival in extremely preterm infants: a national
H Norberg1, J Kowalski1, K Maršál2
1Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology, Division of Pediatrics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Objective:
To explore the association between administration-to-birth interval of antenatal corticosteroids (ACS) and survival in extremely preterm infants.
Design:
Population-based prospective cohort study.
Setting:
All obstetric and neonatal units in Sweden from 1 April 2004 to 31 March 2007.
Population:
All live-born infants (n = 707) born at 22-26 completed weeks of gestation.
Methods:
The relationship between time from first administration of ACS to delivery and survival was investigated using Cox proportional hazards regression analysis.
Main Outcome Measures:
Neonatal (0-27 days) and infant (0-365 days) survival, and infant survival without major neonatal morbidity (intraventricular haemorrhage grade ≥ 3, retinopathy of prematurity stage ≥ 3, periventricular leukomalacia, necrotising enterocolitis, or severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia).
Results:
Five-hundred and ninety-one (84%) infants were exposed to ACS. In the final adjusted model, infant survival was lower in infants unexposed to ACS [hazard ratio (HR) = 0.26; 95% confidence interval 0.15-0.43], in infants born <24 h [HR = 0.53 (0.33-0.87)] and >7 days after ACS [HR = 0.56 (0.32-0.97)], but not in infants born 24-47 h after ACS [HR = 1.60 (0.73-3.50)], as compared with infants born 48 h to 7 days after administration. The findings were similar for neonatal survival. Survival without major neonatal morbidity among live-born infants was 14% in unexposed infants and 30-39% in steroid-exposed groups, indicating that any ACS exposure was valuable.
Conclusions:
Administration of ACS 24 h to 7 days before extremely preterm birth was associated with significantly higher survival than in unexposed infants and in infants exposed to ACS at shorter or longer administration-to-birth intervals.
Tweetable Abstract:
Timing of antenatal corticosteroids is important for extremely preterm infants' survival.
More Related Videos
07:36Modeling Encephalopathy of Prematurity Using Prenatal Hypoxia-ischemia with Intra-amniotic Lipopolysaccharide in Rats
Published on: November 20, 2015
11:50Clinical Practice Protocol of Creative Music Therapy for Preterm Infants and Their Parents in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Published on: January 7, 2020
Related Concept Videos
Drug Dosing: Infants and Children
Antiasthma Drugs: Inhaled Corticosteroids and Glucocorticoids
ICS work through a multifaceted mechanism of action. They suppress the inflammatory response caused by the proliferation of TH cells. They also reduce the transcription of the IL-2 gene, which is involved in the...
Drugs for Treatment of Crohn's Disease in IBD Using Glucocorticoids
Factors Affecting Drug Response: Overview
COPD: Management Using Bronchodilators and Corticosteroids
Teratogenicity