Nearly half received a six-day prepackaged methylprednisolone “dosepak,” which tapers the dose of steroids from highest to lowest. Using anonymous insurance claims data that the Institute for Healthcare Policy and Information purchased for use by University of Michigan health care researchers, they found that half of the people who received oral steroids had gotten them for just six diagnoses, related to back pain, allergies, or respiratory tract infections including bronchitis. ![]() But the new study focused on short-term use and risks. Fast but not risk-freeĪs a specialist in inflammatory bowel diseases, Waljee prescribes steroids often to patients seeking relief from chronic digestive tract issues. This is so important because of how often these drugs are used,” he adds. We need to understand that steroids do have a real risk and that we may use them more than we really need to. “We see a clear signal of higher rates of these three serious events within 30 days of filling a prescription. “Although physicians focus on the long-term consequences of steroids, they don’t tend to think about potential risks from short-term use,” says lead author Akbar Waljee, an assistant professor of gastroenterology at the University of Michigan Medical School. The US Food and Drug Administration require drug makers to list the possible side effects of prednisone and other corticosteroids, but the rate of these events among short-term users has not been well characterized. The researchers call for better education of prescribers and the public about the potential risks, and the most appropriate uses and doses, for short-term courses of steroids. While the rates of the serious events were highest in the first 30 days after a prescription, they stayed elevated even three months later. One in five of them filled a short-term prescription for oral corticosteroids such as prednisone sometime in the three-year study period. The study used data from 1.5 million non-elderly American adults with private insurance. ![]() Though only a small percentage of both groups went to the hospital for these serious health threats, the higher rates seen among people who took steroids for even a few days are cause for caution and even concern, the researchers say. People taking the pills were more likely to break a bone, have a potentially dangerous blood clot, or suffer a life-threatening bout of sepsis in the months after their treatment compared with similar adults who didn’t use corticosteroids, researchers from the University of Michigan report in the journal BMJ. Though these prescriptions are quite common, doctors should consider the potential health risks associated with short-term steroid use, say researchers. Every year, millions of Americans get short-term prescriptions for steroids, such as prednisone, often for back pain, allergies, or other relatively minor ailments.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |