Adverse effects of prenatal glucocorticoid treatment in the preterm infant.

Several studies suggest that glucocorticoids given to the mother at risk for preterm delivery, reduce the incidence of respiratory distress syndrome, intraventricular hemorrhage, bronchopulmonary dysplasia and mortality. Only 20% of pregnancies at risk for preterm delivery are actually treated with steroids: this reluctance may be due to the theoretical adverse effect of this therapy in the mother and the newborn. Our aim was to review the studies performed during the past two decades to assess the risk/benefit ratio of antenatal steroid treatment in the preterm infant.