Oral dexamethasone works better than oral prednisolone in children with croup

Research question Is prednisolone as good as dexamethasone at relieving croup in children?

Answer No. Dexamethasone works better

Why did the authors do the study? Oral dexamethasone is an established treatment for childhood croup, reducing symptoms and helping keep children out of hospital. But in some countries, such as Australia, oral dexamethasone is commercially available as a tablet only, which is unsuitable for infants and many young children. Hospital pharmacies can make up dexamethasone elixir, but it is expensive and unavailable to general practitioners who see many infants with croup. These authors wanted to find out if prednisolone, which is widely available as an elixir, could be used instead. …