Steroid Treatments for Premature Infants Could be Risky

A new study shows that mother's who take repeated courses of a drug, which is meant to enhance the chances for survival of premature babies, could increase the risk of cerebral palsy in infants.

Researchers from the Columbia University Medical Center recently released the results of their study, which shows that the same medication used to save the lives of premature babies, could be harming them.

Drug Raises Questions

Betamethasone is a medication that is causing concern for many doctors and parents across the country.

This drug is typically given to women who are at risk of having a premature baby in order to speed up the development of the infant's lungs.

However, in 2000, the National Institute of Health grew concerned with the lack of information regarding the drugs being used in repeated dosages.

Researchers Conduct Study

Researchers from the Maternal-Fetal Medicine Network recently conducted a study analyzing the health of infants who received the drug.

They followed a total of 556 infants and split them into groups, one group of infants had received the drug and the other group had not.

The researchers found that by the age of two or three, the health of the children was for the most part, identical, except that 6 children out of the group who received the drug had developed cerebral palsy.

The researchers concluded that since the repeated doses of the medication had no long-term benefit and showed a potential for harming infants, doctors should not administer the repeated weekly doses.

(Source: AC Media)

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