[Prenatal corticosteroids: short-term and long-term effects of multiple courses. Literature review in 2013]

Prenatal corticosteroids administration is one of the major advances in obstetrics and neonatology for the prevention of preterm-birth related complications. However, concerns have been raised about its safety regarding neonatal growth and children development. Therefore, some obstetricians have restricted the use of corticosteroids to precisely defined indications. It remains some uncertainty regarding the choice of antenatal corticosteroids, the interval between injections, the timing of effectiveness and the maximum number of courses per pregnancy that is acceptable without causing complications among children. Thus, we performed a current literature review in 2013 regarding short- and long-term efficacy and safety in order to give clear recommendations to practitioners.