Table 6—

Summary of glucocorticosteroids and growth in children

Uncontrolled or severe asthma adversely affects growth and final adult height
No long-term controlled studies have reported any statistically or clinically significant adverse effects on growth of 100–200 μg·day−1 of inhaled glucocorticosteroids
Growth retardation may be seen with all inhaled glucocorticosteroids when a high dose is administered
Growth retardation in both short- and medium-term studies is dose dependent
Important differences seem to exist between the growth-retarding effects of various inhaled glucocorticosteroids and inhalers
Different age groups seem to differ in their susceptibility to the growth-retarding effects of inhaled glucocorticosteroids; children aged 4–10 yrs are more susceptible than adolescents
Glucocorticosteroid-induced changes in growth rate during the first year of treatment appear to be temporary
Children with asthma treated with inhaled glucocorticosteroids attain normal adult height (predicted from family members) but at a later age
  • Data are taken from 157159.