O3.1 Oral glucocorticoids

Some patients with stable COPD show a significant response to oral glucocorticoids (on spirometry or func­tional assessment). Therefore, a short course (two weeks) of prednisolone (20–50mg daily) may be tried with appropri­ate monitoring. Short courses of oral glucocorticoids (<14 days) do not require tapering. A negative bronchodilator response does not predict a negative steroid response. (NHLBI/WHO Workshop Report, April 2001),(Senderovitz et al., 1999) If there is a response to oral steroids, continued treatment with inhaled glucocorticoids is indicated, but these may fail to maintain the response.(Senderovitz et al., 1999),(Vestbo et al., 1999) Patients who have a negligible response to glucocorticoids should not use them.