Schou A J, Heuck C, Wolthers O D
Children's Clinic Randers, Denmark.
J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab. 2003 Sep;16(7):973-80. doi: 10.1515/jpem.2003.16.7.973.
To assess the thickness of the cutis and subcutis in children with prednisolone-induced knemometric growth suppression.
A double blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial with two 7-day treatment periods.
Twenty children with asthma aged 7.7 to 13.8 (mean 10.4) years.
5 mg prednisolone/day.
Lower leg growth rate, thickness of cutis and subcutis and the fraction of low echogenic pixels determined by ultrasound.
Mean lower leg growth rate was -0.23 during prednisolone, 0.58 mm/week during placebo treatment (p < 0.01). Mean total thickness of cutis and subcutis over the knee was reduced by 0.28 during prednisolone, increased by 0.07 mm/week during placebo treatment (p = 0.04). Lower leg growth rate was positively correlated to changes in thickness of cutis and subcutis (p = 0.04; r = 0.31).
Reductions in thickness of cutis and subcutis may account for some of the lower leg growth suppression caused by systemic glucocorticoids.
