Dexamethasone tied to lower risk of death, severe COVID-19The corticosteroid dexamethasone was associated with a 56% lower risk of death and intensive care unit (ICU) admission among hospitalized COVID-19 patients and is safe to use in monitored diabetes patients, according to research presented at this week's Society for Endocrinology annual conference in Edinburgh, Scotland.The unpublished observational study involved data from 1,372 COVID-19 patients admitted to Imperial College NHS Trust hospitals during the second pandemic wave (Nov 1, 2020, to Jan 31, 2021), when dexamethasone was routinely used in COVID-19 patients, and 889 patients admitted during the first wave (Mar 9 to Apr 22, 2020), before the anti-inflammatory drug was used in