Role of Corticosteroids in Treatment of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

All patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), a multifactorial illness, have decreased post-bronchodilator lung function. While it was once believed that hyperresponsiveness and acute bronchodilator reversibility were characteristics of asthma, it is now generally acknowledged that these clinical features also occur in COPD. The current review provides an overview of corticosteroids' role in treating COPD signs. Both localized and systemic inflammations are key components of the pathophysiology of COPD. Inflammation occurs during an exacerbation and has been linked to a quicker course of COPD. Both systemic and local inflammations have been linked to COPD and using both Inhaled and Systemic Corticosteroids (ICS) has been found to be important when treating COPD. According to several current international documents on the management and therapy of COPD, patients at high risk of exacerbations-those with a Forced Expiratory Volume in one second (FEV1) of a fifty percent probability of exacerbation or more than one exacerbation per year-should receive ICS in addition to long-acting bronchodilators as maintenance treatment. In summary, systemic corticosteroids are the gold standard for treating Acute Exacerbations of COPD (AECOPD). Research has shown that using these drugs can improve lung function in the short term while reducing the likelihood of treatment failure, 30-day recurrence rates and length of hospital stay.