Although the statistical difference was
The oral corticosteroid dexamethasone significantly decreased flares of bone pain when added to radiation therapy in patients with metastatic cancer
The overall benefit seen across the full study was largely driven by a reduction in pain flares during the first 5 days, said co-investigator Edward Chow, MD, a professor of radiation
These crystals can irritate the soft tissues, including the synovial tissue that lines
Some of the most common side effects of dexamethasone include: fluid retention and swelling
The questionnaire completion rate was 99 percent for the baseline questionnaire and 82 percent for the ones completed at days 10 and 42
study design, number of patients, gender, bone location, histological subtype, RT dose
SAN ANTONIO – Dexamethasone given before radiotherapy for bone metastases reduced the risk for subsequent pain flare by 8
However, two issues need to be
Six of 11 (55% with a 95% confidence interval of 23–83%) observed pain flares occurred on day 5
These medications are widely used because of their overall effectiveness in reducing inflammation--the process that causes the joint pain warmth and swelling of arthritis and related conditions
Of the 148 patients treated with the steroid, 26
Seven articles investigated pain flare and/or dexamethasone use for conventional external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) while the remaining four investigated stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT)
The relative risk of reduction of pain flare with dexamethasone compared with placebo in days 0–10 would be 25% in the intention-to-treat and 40% in the sensitivity analyses
The high-risk patient groups had a 78% chance of developing pain flare, and pain flare despite dexamethasone [OR =24
The multivariable model for pain flare included 15 variants, with effect sizes ranging from −4