The analysis found that prescriptions for steroids like prednisone to treat acute respiratory ailments nearly doubled from 2007 to 2016.Īlthough steroids can be invaluable, even lifesaving, medications often vital to treating asthma, autoimmune conditions, and chronic pulmonary disease and preventing transplant rejection, their misuse can result in a treatment that is worse than the disease. Yet a recent analysis of nearly 10 million outpatient medical visits in the United States showed that nearly 12 percent of patients with acute respiratory infections were prescribed oral or injected steroids, and this dubious practice is on the rise. Maybe I’ve been living under a rock, but I was surprised to learn that doctors often prescribe oral or injected corticosteroids for acute respiratory tract infections like sore throat, sinusitis, bronchitis and the common cold even though evidence of benefit is sorely lacking and risks of the drugs are widely known. 8 in JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery online, highlights a chronic ailment in American medical care: a frequent failure to practice evidence-based medicine. “Steroid Shots and the Culture of Instant Gratification,” an editorial published Oct.
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