Anesth Pain Med.  2021 Jan;16(1):16-27. 10.17085/apm.21002.

Safety of epidural steroids: a review

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea

Abstract

Spine disease is one of the most common musculoskeletal diseases, especially in an aging society. An epidural steroid injection (ESI) is a highly effective treatment that can be used to bridge the gap between physical therapy and surgery. Recently, it has been increasingly used clinically. The purpose of this article is to review the complications of corticosteroids administered epidurally. Common complications include: hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis suppression, adrenal insufficiency, iatrogenic Cushing's syndrome, hyperglycemia, osteoporosis, and immunological or infectious diseases. Other less common complications include psychiatric problems and ocular ailments. However, the incidence of complications related to epidural steroids is not high, and most of them are not serious. The use of nonparticulate steroids is recommended to minimize the complications associated with epidural steroids. The appropriate interval and dosage of ESI are disputed. We recommend that the selection of appropriate ESI protocol should be based on the suppression of HPA axis, which reflects the systemic absorption of the corticosteroid.

Keyword

Drug-related side effects and adverse reactions; Epidural injections; Glucocorticoids; Guideline; Review; Safety

Reference

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