A paper presented at last month’s virtual conference of the American College of Chest Physicians found that steroids do not improve outcomes among intubated patients with angioedema.
The authors of the paper looked at more than 1,200 angioedema patients who were intubated at U.S. hospitals over four years (ending this past January). After looking at length of intubation, total length of stay, time spent in the intensive care unit, and use of glucocorticoids, the authors determined that the steroid use had no impact on any of the other variables.
Angioedema is a swelling of the deeper layers of the skin, most often around the face – particularly the lips. While most cases are successfully treated with antihistamines, severe cases can become life-threatening if the swelling spreads to the tongue or throat – blocking the airways, requiring use of a ventilator.
A synopsis of the full paper can be read at journal.chestnet.org/article/S0012-3692(20)32254-6/fulltext