New research suggests that children using steroid-based asthma inhalers over a long period never reach their full growth potential.
For years scientists have believed that slower growth rates among children using inhalers containing steroids were temporary.
Earlier research, carried out after concerns were raised about growth rates among children on the medication, determined that these patients would eventually catch up with their peers.
But a recent study published in The New England Journal of Medicine says that adults who used steroid-based inhalers as a child were a half inch below normal growth.
In mild cases of asthma, inhalers that do not contain steroids are used to relax the muscles and open up the airways to the lungs.
In severe cases, steroid-based inhalers are used on a regular basis to build up a protection against future attacks.
The benefits of using these inhalers have always been thought to outweigh the side effects.
The latest study of 1,000 children, aged between five and 13 and with mild to moderate asthma, looked at their eventual height after years of using either steroid-based inhalers, non-steroid-based inhalers or a placebo.
After four years of treatment, researchers measured and weighed the children every six months for eight years and found that their height of those using steroid-based inhalers would never catch up with their peers.
The steroid inhalers used in the study are effective and safe and lead to few medical emergencies compared to those using a non-steroid inhaler.
Concerned that parents may be alarmed, the researchers in the latest study have assured parents there is no need for panic and the half an inch growth difference should be weighed up against the positive effects of a steroid-based inhaler.
They suggest those concerned with their child’s growth should consider reducing the dosage of this medication under the supervision of their doctor. The researchers claim the lowest effective dose could minimise the effect on eventual adult height.
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