BMJ  2005;331:1475 (17 December), doi:10.1136/bmj.331.7530.1475-a

Letter

Giving steroids before elective caesarean section

Authors respond to editorial

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR—We reported the outcome of a randomised trial of antenatal betamethasone before elective caesarean section at term, showing a reduction of more than 50% in admission with respiratory distress for babies delivered at 37-39 weeks (BMJ 24 September, p 662). Of the 35 babies admitted with respiratory distress, 19 control babies had transient tachypnoea and five had respiratory distress syndrome, compared with 10 babies with transient tachypnoea and one with respiratory distress syndrome in the intervention group. Fourteen control babies required intensive care, three with respiratory distress syndrome requiring ventilation for two to five days, with a 12-18 day stay, whereas only two in the intervention group received intensive care.

We postulated that the reduced incidence of transient tachypnoea with antenatal betamethasone may result from an effect on the expression of the epithelial channel gene allowing the lung to switch from fluid secretion to fluid absorption. . . . [Full text of this article]

¹ Conwy and Denbighshire NHS Trust, Glan Clwyd Hospital, Rhyl, Denbighshire LL18 5UJ DrPeter.Stutchfield@cd-tr.wales.nhs.uk, ² Institute of Medical and Social Care Research, University of Wales Bangor LL57 2PX

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