Prenatal diagnosis and treatment of congenital adrenal hyperplasia.

Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) due to 21-hydroxylase deficiency is associated with hormonal imbalance which predisposes affected females to prenatal development of genital ambiguity. Because the disease is usually not lethal and can be treated with glucocorticoids, affected pregnancies are seldom terminated. Dexamethasone can be administered to the pregnant mother and is effective in correcting the fetus's adrenal hormone imbalance during gestation. Nearly a decade's experience with prenatal treatment of CAH indicates that the risk-benefit ratio is favorable for mother and fetus with careful medical supervision of gestationally administered dexamethasone.