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Sonal M. Patel, Kenneth Falchuk, Dexamethasone Pulse Steroids in Ulcerative Colitis—Is it Time for a Change?, Inflammatory Bowel Diseases, Volume 9, Issue 3, 1 May 2003, Page 213, https://doi.org/10.1097/00054725-200305000-00014
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A prospective, open-label trial assessing dexamethasone pulse therapy in moderate to severe ulcerative colitis. Sood A, Vandaan M, Sood N, Awasthi G. J Clin Gastroenterol 2002;35:328–331.
This trial from the Dayanand Medical College and Hospital in Punjab, India, examines the effectiveness of corticosteroid pulse therapy in the treatment of moderate to severe ulcerative colitis (UC). The authors enrolled 14 patients with moderate to severe ulcerative colitis for treatment with dexamethasone pulse therapy (100 mg/d infusion in 5% dextrose over 4 hours) over 3 consecutive days (equivalent to 2500 mg hydrocortisone) followed by complete withdrawal of the medication. All patients were maintained on sulfasalazine 6 g/d for the entire 60 days of the trial. Ulcerative colitis disease activity was then evaluated at days 7, 15, 30, and 60.
The 14 patients included in the study had either moderate or severe ulcerative colitis. The severity of disease was determined by the disease activity index described by Mitsuru et al. There were 7 men and 7 women enrolled. The mean age was 37.0 ± 12.6. The diagnosis of UC was based on clinical presentation, endoscopy, and colonic histology. Exclusion criteria included uncontrolled hypertension, active sepsis, pregnancy, psychiatric illness, and an unwillingness to participate. Seven patients were excluded based on these criteria. Eight of the patients enrolled were newly diagnosed cases of ulcerative colitis. Five of the 6 previously diagnosed patients had taken steroids for UC in the past.
