Corticosteroids in Pediatric Septic Shock: A Narrative Review

Objective: A controversial aspect of pediatric septic shock management is corticosteroid therapy. Current guidelines do not recommend its use in forms responsive to fluids and inotropes but leave the decision to physicians in forms refractory to the first steps of therapy. Data Sources: Review of literature from January 2013 to December 2023 from online libraries Pubmed, Medline, Cochrane Library, and Scopus. Study Selection: The keywords “septic shock”, “steroids” and “children” were used. Data Extraction: Of 399 articles, 63 were selected. Data Synthesis: Regarding mortality, although the 2019 Cochrane review supports reduced mortality, benefits on long-term mortality and in patients with CIRCI (critical illness-related corticosteroid insufficiency) are not clear. Yang’s metanalysis and retrospective studies of Nichols and Atkinson show no difference or even an increase in mortality. Regarding severity, the Cochrane review claims that hydrocortisone seems to reduce the length of intensive care hospitalization but influences the duration of ventilatory and inotropic support, and the degree of multi-organ failure appears limited. Further controversies exist on adrenal function evaluation: according to literature, including the Surviving Sepsis Campaign guidelines, basal or stimulated hormonal dosages do not allow the identification of patients who could benefit from hydrocortisone therapy (poor reproducibility). Regarding side effects, muscle weakness, hypernatremia, and hyperglycemia are the most observed. Conclusions: The literature does not give certainties about the efficacy of corticosteroids in pediatric septic shock, as their influence on primary outcomes (mortality and severity) is controversial. A subgroup of patients suffering from secondary adrenal insufficiency could benefit from it, but it remains to be defined how to identify and what protocol to use to treat them.