Prospective study of corticosteroid as an adjunct in the treatment of endobronchial tuberculosis in adults.

Although endobronchial tuberculosis frequently causes bronchial stenosis, there are no specific therapies to prevent the sequelae. The use of corticosteroids remains controversial and there have been no prospective comparative studies about the effectiveness of corticosteroids. This study was undertaken in order to determine the effectiveness of corticosteroids in the prevention of complications of endobronchial tuberculosis. Thirty-four patients with endobronchial tuberculosis who were admitted to Chung-Ang University hospital from March 1991 to December 1995 were evaluated prospectively to determine the effect of corticosteroid in the treatment of endobronchial tuberculosis. All patients were randomly divided into two groups: group 1 (n=17, anti-tuberculosis chemotherapy only) and group 2 (n=17, combining anti-tuberculosis chemotherapy with oral corticosteroid). Serial bronchoscopies, pulmonary function tests and chest roentgenograms were analyzed every 2 months until the complete resolution of endobronchial tuberculosis. Before treatment commenced there were no significant differences between the two groups with respect to sex, mean age, pulmonary function, chest roentgenogram and morphologic patterns of endobronchial lesion. After treatment, the healing rate of bronchoscopic findings and changes in pulmonary function showed no significant differences between the two groups. Radiologic improvements were observed in all eight patients (five in group 1 and three in group 2) with segmental atelectasis on chest roentgenograms after 2 months of treatment. This study suggests that corticosteroid therapy would not influence the outcome of endobronchial tuberculosis and that prompt treatment with early diagnosis, before formation of fibrosis would be necessary to prevent complications of endobronchial tuberculosis, such as bronchostenosis.