TOPLINE

Children with severe Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia who were treated with high-dose methylprednisolone recovered faster and had a lower prevalence of chronic lung disease with better pulmonary outcomes at 6 months than those treated with conventional doses.

METHODOLOGY

• Researchers conducted a retrospective cohort study to compare high‑dose vs conventional‑dose methylprednisolone for recovery and prevalence of chronic lung disease in children with SMPP.
• They analyzed medical records of 82 children with SMPP (mean age, 78.2 months; 46 girls) admitted to a Chinese hospital between January 2018 and January 2024.
• Children were divided into two groups based on initial glucocorticoid dosage: high-dose methylprednisolone (≥ 10 mg/kg/d) and conventional-dose methylprednisolone (1-5 mg/kg/d).
• Researchers evaluated short-term outcomes including fever duration, time to defervescence after corticosteroid treatment, and length of hospitalization.
• The outcomes assessed at 6 months included the prevalence of chronic lung disease, oxygen saturation levels, and pulmonary function.

TAKEAWAY

• Children in the high-dose group experienced significantly shorter fever duration than the conventional-dose group (9.8 vs 16.1 days; P < .001).
• Time to defervescence after corticosteroid treatment was lower in the high-dose vs conventional-dose group (1.0 vs 7.0 days; P < .001), and so was hospitalization length (13.4 vs 18.4 days; P < .001).
• At 6-month follow-up, the high-dose group had a significantly lower prevalence of chronic lung disease (28.2% vs 85.4%) and higher oxygen saturation levels (98.0% vs 96.7%; P < .05 for both).
• Pulmonary function measures at 6 months, evaluated in children older than 5 years, were better in those who received high doses (P < .001).

IN PRACTICE

"High-dose methylprednisolone therapy was more effective than conventional-dose treatment for SMPP patients. It was also associated with a lower prevalence of CLD, higher oxygen saturation levels, and better pulmonary function outcomes," wrote the authors of the study.

SOURCE

The study was led by Yanyan Su and Yanjuan Yu, Children's Hospital Affiliated to Zhengzhou University, Henan Children's Hospital, Zhengzhou Children's Hospital in Zhengzhou, China. It was published online on July 29 in Pediatric Pulmonology.

LIMITATIONS

The retrospective design and single-center nature of the study may limit generalizability of the findings. The relatively small sample size of 82 patients and lack of randomization could introduce selection bias. Long-term follow-up beyond 6 months was not conducted to assess durability of treatment benefits or potential delayed adverse effects of high-dose corticosteroid therapy.

DISCLOSURES

The study was supported by grants from the Henan Provincial Medical Science and Technology Research Program, Zhengzhou Science and Technology Innovation Guidance, and Natural Science Foundation of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The authors reported no relevant conflicts of interest.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.