Glucocorticoids and rates of biphasic reactions in patients with
adrenaline-treated anaphylaxis
Abstract
Background: The effectiveness of glucocorticoids in preventing biphasic
reactions in patients with anaphylaxis is still controversial. We
evaluated the effects of glucocorticoids on rates of biphasic reactions
in patients with anaphylaxis treated with adrenaline. Methods: In this
retrospective observational study using a national inpatient database in
Japan, we identified 31,570 patients with anaphylaxis treated with
adrenaline on the day of admission. We divided them into two groups:
those who were treated with adrenaline plus glucocorticoids and those
who received adrenaline only on the day of admission. We performed a
one-to-four propensity score matching analysis between the two groups.
The primary outcome was occurrence of a biphasic reaction and the
secondary outcome was 7-day all-cause mortality. Results: Of the 31,570
eligible patients, 28,145 (89.2%) were treated with glucocorticoids.
After propensity score matching, there were no significant differences
in rates of biphasic reactions (odds ratio, 1.03; 95% confidence
interval, 0.86–1.24; p=0.14) or 7-day all-cause mortality (odds ratio,
0.68; 95% confidence interval, 0.40–1.17; p=0.16) between patients
with anaphylaxis treated with and without glucocorticoids. Conclusion:
Our findings do not support the use of glucocorticoids to prevent
biphasic reactions in patients with severe anaphylaxis requiring
adrenaline.