Cushing’s syndrome as a result of nasal drops for the eyes with dexamethasone (clinical observations)

Cushing’s syndrome often develops due to an excessive intake of glucocorticoids with oral, intravenous, intramuscular administration, but it is possible to get a similar complication with intranasal administration. In this article, we present two cases of children who received nasal eye drops with dexamethasone. The use of drugs for 5–6 months in one case, and 3 years in another led to the formation of a typical clinical picture of the syndrome. The patients showed progressive dysplastic obesity with a moon-shaped face, atrophic skin changes with the appearance of red-violet, crimson stretch marks, and a decrease in the growth rate. There were some peculiarities in the results of laboratory and instrumental examination, due to age-sex characteristics and the duration of taking dexamethasone. According to the totality of anamnestic, clinical and laboratory parameters, instrumental examination, a drug-induced cushingoid syndrome was diagnosed. Subsequent follow-up after discontinuation of the drug confirmed the diagnosis. The presented clinical cases emphasize that the eye drops contain high doses of steroids and can lead to the development of Cushing’s syndrome, especially in children with intranasal use. When using nasal drops, it should be borne in mind that glucocorticoids will enter the mouth and be absorbed through the gastrointestinal tract. One should take into account the possibility of psychological dependence on such drops and, as a result, uncontrolled consumption by adolescent children.