Trial reportVirology journal2025
Methylprednisolone pulse therapy compared with intravenous dexamethasone for severe COVID-19 patients: a randomized clinical trial.
Trial report in Virology journal, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundCOVID-19, caused by SARS-CoV-2, leads to severe respiratory complications, often requiring intensive care. Corticosteroids have been widely used to manage inflammation in COVID-19 patients, with dexamethasone and methylprednisolone being among the most commonly administered options. However, their relative efficacy remains a subject of debate. This study aimed to compare the effectiveness of dexamethasone and methylprednisolone in hospitalized COVID-19 patients.
methodsThis double-blind, randomized controlled trial was conducted at Imam-Ali Hospital, Karaj, Iran, on 300 hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Patients were randomly assigned to receive either intravenous dexamethasone (8 mg twice daily) or pulse methylprednisolone (500 mg daily for three days), in addition to standard COVID-19 management. The primary outcomes included mortality rate, ICU length of stay, and the need for mechanical ventilation. Secondary outcomes involved blood oxygen saturation (SpO₂) levels. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS (version 26).
resultsThe study included 150 patients in each treatment group. The mortality rate was 12.6% in the dexamethasone group and 15.3% in the methylprednisolone group, with no statistically significant difference (RR: 0.82, P = 0.50). The need for mechanical ventilation was observed in 16.6% of patients in the dexamethasone group and 21.3% in the methylprednisolone group, also without a significant difference (RR: 0.78, P = 0.30). However, ICU stay was significantly shorter in the dexamethasone group (9.5 days) compared to the methylprednisolone group (11.3 days) (P < 0.001). No significant differences were noted in SpO₂ levels between the two groups.
conclusionBoth dexamethasone and methylprednisolone demonstrated similar efficacy in outcomes such as mortality rate need for mechanical ventilation in hospitalized COVID-19 patients. However, dexamethasone was associated with a significantly shorter ICU stay, suggesting a potential advantage in hospitalization duration. Further research is needed to refine corticosteroid use and explore additional immunomodulatory strategies to improve COVID-19 outcomes.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.