Purpose Corticosteroids are now recommended for patients with severe COVID-19 including those with COVID-related ARDS. This has generated renewed interest regarding whether corticosteroids should be used in non-COVID ARDS as well. The objective of this study was to summarize all RCTs examining the use of corticosteroids in ARDS. Methods The protocol of this study was pre-registered on PROSPERO (CRD42020200659). We searched online databases including MEDLINE, EMBASE, CDC library of COVID research, CINAHL, and COCHRANE. We included RCTs that compared the effect of corticosteroids to placebo or usual care in adult patients with ARDS, including patients with COVID-19. Three reviewers abstracted data independently and in duplicate using a pre-specified standardized form. We assessed individual study risk of bias using the revised Cochrane ROB-2 tool and rated certainty in outcomes using GRADE methodology. We pooled data using a random effects model. The main outcome for this review was 28-day-mortality. Results We included 18 RCTs enrolling 2826 patients. The use of corticosteroids probably reduced mortality in patients with ARDS of any etiology (2740 patients in 16 trials, RR 0.82, 95% CI 0.72–0.95, ARR 8.0%, 95% CI 2.2–12.5%, moderate certainty). Patients who received a longer course of corticosteroids (over 7 days) had higher rates of survival compared to a shorter course. Conclusion The use of corticosteroids probably reduces mortality in patients with ARDS. This effect was consistent between patients with COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 ARDS, corticosteroid types, and dosage. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00134-021-06394-2.

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Multiple myeloma (MM) is a plasma cell neoplasm characterized by the clonal proliferation of malignant plasma cells within the bone marrow. It is considered a disease of older patients with a median age at diagnosis of 70 years. 1 Despite significant progress with novel therapies prolonging survival in these patients, MM remains incurable and leads to significant morbidity and mortality. Use of long-term therapies in the treatment of MM can provide sustained disease control by suppressing clonal evolution, and disease-related symptom control, and in some patients, may transform myeloma into a chronic condition with improvements