Heart Care Info - Heart Disease Prevention & Treatment

Perioperative Methylprednisolone and Outcome in Neonates Undergoing Heart Surgery

SK Pasquali, JS Li, X He, ML Jacobs... - Pediatrics, 2012 - Am Acad Pediatrics BACKGROUND: Recent studies have called into question the benefit of perioperative corticosteroids in children undergoing heart surgery, but have been limited by the lack of placebo control, limited power, and grouping of various steroid regimens together in ...

RESULTS: A total of 3180 neonates were included: 22% received methylprednisolone on both the day before and day of surgery, 12% on the day before surgery only, and 28% on the day of surgery only; 38% did not receive any perioperative steroids. In multivariable analysis, there was no significant mortality or length-of-stay benefit associated with any methylprednisolone regimen versus no steroids, and no difference in postoperative infection. In subgroup analysis by surgical-risk group, there was a significant association of methylprednisolone with infection consistent across all regimens (overall odds ratio 2.6, 95% confidence interval 1.3–5.2) in the lower-surgical-risk group.