We have located links that may give you full text access.
JOURNAL ARTICLE
REVIEW
Glucocorticoids and lung development in the fetus and preterm infant.
Pediatric Pulmonology 2001 July
During the final prenatal period of fetal lung development in humans, important maturational processes occur, including the production of surfactant necessary to decrease surface tension at the air-liquid interface of the alveoli. During early gestation, the glucocorticoid receptor is expressed in the fetal lung, and glucocorticoids stimulate the production of surfactant-associated proteins and increase phospholipid synthesis by enhancing the activity of phosphatidylcholine. Other glucocorticoid-induced effects may include stimulation of cell maturation and differentiation, inhibition of DNA synthesis, changes in interstitial tissue components, stimulation of antioxidant enzymes, and regulation of pulmonary fluid metabolism. Recently, it was suggested that glucocorticoids are also important in postnatal pulmonary development, and may be related to the development of neonatal lung disease in preterm infants. Surfactant deficiency that can be prevented by antenatal corticosteroid treatment causes infant respiratory distress syndrome and requires mechanical ventilation. Ventilation by itself or in combination with high levels of oxygen, fluid overload, pulmonary infections, sepsis, and air leak syndrome causes an acute pulmonary inflammatory reaction that may result in chronic lung disease or bronchopulmonary dysplasia. Glucocorticoids are effective in the treatment of chronic lung disease of prematurity and regulate the inflammatory response by the interaction with transcription factors such as nuclear factor kappaB and activated protein 1. Indeed, inflammatory cells and the levels of chemokines and cytokines in bronchoalveolar fluid decrease after dexamethasone treatment. However, treatment of fetuses and preterm infants with repeated and/or high doses of corticosteroids may have considerable long-term side effects on somatic, brain, and lung growth. The difficult balance between short-term gain and the possible long-term side effects of glucocorticoids in preterms remains a difficult issue.
Full text links
Related Resources
Trending Papers
Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction: diagnosis, risk assessment, and treatment.Clinical Research in Cardiology : Official Journal of the German Cardiac Society 2024 April 12
Proximal versus distal diuretics in congestive heart failure.Nephrology, Dialysis, Transplantation 2024 Februrary 30
Efficacy and safety of pharmacotherapy in chronic insomnia: A review of clinical guidelines and case reports.Mental Health Clinician 2023 October
World Health Organization and International Consensus Classification of eosinophilic disorders: 2024 update on diagnosis, risk stratification, and management.American Journal of Hematology 2024 March 30
Get seemless 1-tap access through your institution/university
For the best experience, use the Read mobile app
All material on this website is protected by copyright, Copyright © 1994-2024 by WebMD LLC.
This website also contains material copyrighted by 3rd parties.
By using this service, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy.
Your Privacy Choices
You can now claim free CME credits for this literature searchClaim now
Get seemless 1-tap access through your institution/university
For the best experience, use the Read mobile app