OBJECTIVE： To investigate the effects and safety of 2 kinds of glucocorticoid administration regimens including 5 d and 15 d on clinical efficacy， pulmonary function， quality of life in elderly patients with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease （AECOPD）. METHODS： A total of 160 elderly patients with AECOPD selected from Haikou Forth People’s Hospital during May 2013-Dec. 2015 were divided into group A and B according to lottery method， with 80 cases in each group. Both groups received symptomatic treatment as eliminating phlegm and relieving asthma， controlling infection， etc. Based on it， group A was given Methylprednisolone sodium succinate for injection， 40 mg/d for 15 d； group B was given Methylprednisolone sodium succinate for injection， 40 mg/d for 5 d. Clinical efficacies were compared between 2 groups as well as the levels of pulmonary ventilation function indexes， blood gas analysis indexes， Spitzer life quality index scale （QLI） scores before and after treatment. The occurrence of ADR was also compared between 2 groups. RESULTS： Total response rate of group A was 92.50％， and that of group B was 90.00％， without statistical significance （P＞0.05）. Before treatment， there was no statistical significance in the levels of pulmonary ventilation function indexes， blood gas analysis indexes， QLI scores between 2 groups （P＞0.05）. After treatment， FVC， FEV1， FEV1％ and PaO2 of 2 groups were significantly higher than before treatment， while PaCO2 was significantly lower than before treatment， with statistical significance （P＜0.05）； there was no statistical significance between 2 groups （P＞0.05）. QLI scores of 2 groups were significantly higher than before treatment， and the group B was significantly higher than the group A， with statistical significance （P＜0.05）. The incidence of ADR in group B （6.25％） was significantly lower than group A （22.50％）， with statistical significance（P＜0.05）.  CONCLUSIONS： Glucocorticoid administration regimen including 5 d and 15 d in the treatment of elderly patients with AECOPD possess the same effects in improving lung function； glucocorticoid administration regimen for 5 d application is superior in effectively improving the quality of life of patients， reducing the risk of ADR， and has clinical value.