Even partial steroid treatment can benefit extremely preterm infants, NIH study suggests

(NIH/Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) Steroids improve survival and reduce the chances of certain birth defects for extremely premature infants, even if the treatment course is not finished before delivery, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. Steroids are a standard treatment for pregnant women likely to deliver before 34 weeks because these drugs are known to reduce the chance of complications and death among prematur...