This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow P3Rs: Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when P3Rs are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow E-mail this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My File Cabinet
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via CrossRef
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Allen;, D. B.
Right arrow Articles by Bergman, D. A.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Allen;, D. B.
Right arrow Articles by Bergman, D. A.

PEDIATRICS Vol. 108 No. 5 November 2001, pp. 1234-1235

Effect of Inhaled Corticosteroids on Growth

The first 20% of the full text of this article appears below.

To the Editor.

I read with interest the meta-analysis of Sharek and Bergman1 regarding the effect of inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) on growth, and felt it was important to address 2 issues in response. First, the authors' analysis of the growth effect seen during treatment with fluticasone propionate (FP) 200 µg/day indicated a small but statistically significant reduction in growth rate compared with placebo. This differs from the nonsignificant P value reported in our original paper,2 and an explanation for this discrepancy is required. Second, the conclusions arrived at by the authors are nevertheless weakened by a failure to review other growth studies in which FP was the active comparator. The result is a message that may be confusing to practitioners caring for children with asthma.

I would like to begin by addressing the different conclusion arrived at by Drs Sharek and Bergman regarding the effect on growth with FP 200 µg/day. As indicated in our study, we compared the effect of FP 100 µg/day and FP 200 µg/day with placebo in prepubescent children.2 The data for the children who remained prepubertal throughout the study were analyzed by analysis of variance (ANOVA) controlling for investigator. We reported . . . [Full Text of this Article]