Impact of Perioperative Dexamethasone in the Context of Neurosurgical Brain Metastasis Resection

BackgroundPatients with brain metastases that undergo brain metastasis resection regularly receive perioperative dexamethasone. We sought to evaluate whether perioperative dexamethasone in brain metastases is linked to survival. MethodsRetrospective data on perioperative dexamethasone dosage in resected brain metastasis patients at three hospital sites of the Charite from 2010-2022 were collected. Cut-off values for cumulative perioperative dexamethasone dose as a continuous predictor variable for survival were determined using maximally selected rank statistics. Patients were dichotomized based on determined cut-offs of cumulative dexamethasone (pre-operative: < 40 mg vs [&ge;]40 mg; post-operative: < 180 mg vs [&ge;] 180 mg) and pre- and postoperative: < 281 mg vs [&ge;] 281 mg). Medical records included baseline demographic, radiological, histopathological and treatment-related characteristics. Based on cut-off values for dexamethasone downstream statistical analyses included Kaplan-Meier, Cox proportional hazards regression for overall survival with adjustment for potential confounders including age, gender, Karnofsky performance status and presence of extracranial metastasis via propensity score matching. Results539 patients were included. Median follow-up time was 58,97 months. After adjusting for age, gender, Karnofsky performance status and presence of extracranial metastasis patients with higher cumulative perioperative dexamethasone ([&ge;]281 mg) showed shorter survival (HR: 1.47 (1.20-1.80, p<0.001) as compared to patients with lower cumulative doses (<281 mg). This effect remained significant after correction for patients that died within 2 months after resection and for patients with KPS below 50% and, independently from this approach performing propensity score matched-based analysis of the total cohort of patients, respectively. ConclusionCumulative perioperative dexamethasone is associated with decreased survival in the context of brain metastasis resection. Strict dosage, down taper or methods reducing corticosteroid dependency should be regularly evaluated in clinical practice in patients with brain metastases.