1.   And some asthma patients can switch from oral steroids to the inhaled form, which is not absorbed as readily throughout the body.

2.   Before inhaled steroids were available, asthma was commonly treated with oral steroids, given in tablets.

3.   Chronic use of oral steroids can stunt growth in children and lead to brittle bone disease and high blood pressure.

4.   He pointed out that the alternative treatment to high-dose inhaled steroids is the use of oral steroids, which have a much higher risk of side effects.

5.   His doctor prescribed antibiotics, then prednisone, an oral steroid, to reduce swelling.

6.   Oral steroids have also been linked to liver disease.

7.   Only in very severe cases are oral steroids used.

8.   Some patients do everything they are told to do, and still their asthma rages out of control and responds only to oral steroids.

9.   Sometimes oral steroids are used to counter the inflammation around a herniated disk and reduce the pain enough to permit the patient to exercise.

10.   They could wind up needing the stronger oral steroids, which would have an even worse effect on bones, he said.