Effectiveness of Systemic Corticosteroids Therapy for Nonsevere Patients With COVID-19: A Multicenter, Retrospective, Longitudinal Cohort Study

•Glucocorticoids are used to treat patients with nonsevere COVID-19 in clinic, but the efficacy of such treatment is still a matter of intense debate.•In hospitalized patients with nonsevere COVID-19, systemic glucocorticoids treatment increased the risk of progression from nonsevere to severe, all-cause mortality, and prolonged length of stay, and dose-response relationships were present.•In nonsevere patients with COVID-19, we propose that systemic glucocorticoids be avoided unless absolutely essential, but more cautious treatment strategies and clinical adverse drug reaction monitoring should be undertaken if necessary.