Systemic steroid treatment of acute bronchiolitis: A retrospective study

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: Previous studies have reported that clinical efficacy of steroid therapy for acute bronchiolitis is controversial. However, since it is still frequently used in clinical practice, we sought to re-evaluate its effectiveness. METHODS: This study included 277 children with acute bronchiolitis who were admitted to Kyungpook National University Children's Hospital from March 2013 to July 2016. Erythrocyte sedimentation rates, C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, and viral polymerase chain reaction testing results were obtained, and respiratory rate (RR) was measured periodically. Forty-eight patients were treated with an intravenous (IV) steroid (17.3%, IV group) and 19 patients were treated with a per oral (PO) steroid medication (6.9%, PO group). The remaining 210 patients were steroid-free patients (74.2%, nonsteroid group). RESULTS: RR and CRP levels were higher in the IV group, along with a longer hospitalization period and duration of wheezing. The rate of change from the fastest initial RR to the mean RR on the first treatment day was greatest in the IV group; this finding was statistically significant after controlling for initial RR (16.06% in the IV group, 3.94% in the PO group, 4.90% in the nonsteroid group; P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: There was a trend of IV steroid treatment toward more severe bronchiolitis. A significant reduction in RR on the first day of steroid treatment was observed in IV steroid-treated patients. IV steroid therapy may play a positive role in initial RR stabilization for severe bronchiolitis.