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What is Prednisone?

Prednisone is a synthetic corticosteroid drug that decreases inflammation and suppresses the immune system. It is used for many purposes including relapses in MS; for rheumatic disorders; neoplasms; collagen diseases. Prednisone is activated by the liver into prednisolone.

Reasons taken & Efficacy

Reasons and Efficacy
Reasons taken	# of patients Efficacy	# of patients evaluated by
Other	167	23
Multiple Sclerosis MS	149	27
Optic neuritis (inflammation, optic nerve)	54	20
Stiffness/Spasticity	44	5
Pain	39	7
Support another treatment	35	11
relapse	16	7
disease-related symptoms	13	2
Fatigue	9	0
Relapse MS (exacerbation)	8	3
General health	6	2
Mobility	5	1
Sensation	5	2
Don't know	5	1
Asthma	3	2
MS hug	3	0
Numbness and tingling with pins and needles (paresthesia)	3	0
Vision	3	0
Balance problems	2	1
Double vision (diplopia)	2	0
Walking problems	2	1
Walking difficult without aid	2	2
Bladder problems	2	1
Transverse Myelitis	2	2
Blurry vision	2	0
Numbness	2	0
Aching, burning, throbbing body pain	1	0
tapering off	1	0
Arthritis pain in knees	1	0
Devic's Neuromyelitis Optica NMO	1	0
Blindness, left eye	1	0
Wheezing	1	0
relieves the side affects of my Avonex shot.	1	0
Bone Pain	1	0
Vertigo	1	0
Pain in arm	1	0
Lupus Erythematosus	1	0
possible reaction	1	1
Left leg weakness, pain, stiffness	1	0
Burning sensation all around torso-like a tight belt	1	0
To slowly ween me off the steroid. Steroids used to calm exacerbation	1	0
Respiratory infections	1	0
exacerbation	1	0
foot and leg numbness, weakness, need splints to walk.	1	0
Numbness in lower extremities	1	0
Myasthenia Gravis	1	1
Taper Down from Infusion	1	0
heavy legs	1	0
Weakness in arms	1	1
reduce inflammation	1	0
Numbness in legs	1	0
Blurry vision/eye pain	1	0
Inflammation	1	0
Headaches and neck pain	1	0
Hearing loss	1	0
Migraine	1	0
Slurred speech	1	0
Depression	1	1
Speech problems	1	0
Eczema	1	1
To stop/slow MS attack	1	0
Loss of use of left side	1	1
Swallowing	1	0
Dizzy Spells Worsened	1	0
Taper from Solumedrol	1	0
To help with Migraines that increased from last Relapse	1	1
calm inflamation of relapse	1	1
Flu like symptoms	1	0
MS attack	1	0
Assistive communication	1	0
MS flair	1	1
Injection site redness	1	0
severe rash and swelling	1	0
MS & SLE	1	0
Trigeminal neuralgia	1	0
Helps walking	1	0
Dizziness	1	0
Vision loss	1	0
when i have relapse	1	0
Shortness of breath	1	1
most reasons listed above, i get this for	1	1
ms doc is always upset as he says my ms is still active, five months after beginning these damn infusions	1	1
Left leg weakness, pain, stiffness, locking up	1	0
Visual disturbance	1	0
Numbness in hands, arms, legs, and waist	1	0
Hives	1	0
leg weakness	1	0
doctor ordered (no symptoms at time of treatment)	1	0
excerbation	1	0

See all 89 reasons taken ▼

See all 251 patients currently taking Prednisone

Mouse over the table for more information

Side Effects

Side effects as an overall problem

Severe	30	26%
Moderate	35	31%
Mild	30	26%
None	19	17%

Most commonly reported side effects

Weight gain	46	52%	10 24 19
Makes me very edgy	35	39%	7 17 14
Increased appetite	32	36%	7 18 10
dry mouth	28	31%	8 14 7
Facial swelling	27	30%	7 9 14
Fatigue	20	22%	2 7 13
roid effects	18	20%	5 7 9
Loss of taste	15	17%
Acne	15	17%
Elevated blood sugar (glucose)	13	15%
Insomnia	4	4%
Mood swings	2	2%
Nausea	2	2%
Sleeplessness	2	2%
Bloating	2	2%
facial puffiness	1	1%
immune system weakened	1	1%
increased energy/mania	1	1%
Depression	1	1%
optic nerve swelling	1	1%
eye pain, & double vision	1	1%
Tremor in hands	1	1%
Hypomania	1	1%
Weight gain, insomnia	1	1%
Fluid retention weight gain	1	1%
Sleep deprivation	1	1%
I am stopping during a prednisone taper	1	1%
Unable to eat	1	1%
Metallic taste in mouth	1	1%
Nosebleed	1	1%
Emotional lability	1	1%
Irritability	1	1%
cateracts in both eyes	1	1%
swelling of the feet	1	1%
Blushing/Flushing/Overheating	1	1%
high blood sugars	1	1%
Yeast Infection (Candida albicans)	1	1%
Stomach (gastric) ulcer pain	1	1%
ear fullness	1	1%
Increased Hunger	1	1%
Anxiety and frustration	1	1%
Headaches	1	1%
Cataracts on both eyes	1	1%
Pancreatitis	1	1%
High blood pressure increased	1	1%
Digestive disturbances	1	1%
feet/ankle swelling/pain	1	1%
Light sensitivity (photophobia)	1	1%
Indigestion	1	1%
Blurred Vision	1	1%
Dizziness with hypotension upon standing	1	1%
I have gained 13 lbs while I was on prednisone and my face is big and very round. I cannot wait until this prednisone gets out of my system.	1	1%
Dry eyes	1	1%
relapse	1	1%
very adjustated	1	1%
Stomach pain	1	1%

Mild
Moderate
Severe

See all 56 reported side effects ▼

Dosages

Top 10 dosages based on patients currently taking Prednisone. See all 72 dosages ►

1000mg as needed	100 mg as needed	10mg as needed	1200 mg as needed	1200mg as needed	20 mg as needed	20mg as needed	2.5 mg as needed	2.5mg as needed	25mg as needed	40mg as needed	4 5mg/5mL as needed	50 mg as needed	5 10mg as needed	5mg/5mL as needed	5mg as needed	60 mg as needed	60mg as needed	6 1mg as needed	70mg as needed	75mg as needed	80 mg as needed	8 20mg as needed	daily	2.5 mg yearly	5 mg/5 mL monthly	2.5 mg weekly	5 mg/5 mL weekly	5 mg weekly	1 mg daily	10 mg weekly	2 mg daily	2.5 mg daily	20 mg weekly	3 mg daily	3.5 mg daily	120 mg monthly	4 mg daily	30 mg weekly	5 mg/5 mL daily	5 mg daily	7 mg daily	7.5 mg daily	8 mg daily	60 mg weekly	10 mg daily	15 mg daily	3 x 5 mg/5 mL daily	600 mg monthly	20 mg daily	5 x 5 mg/5 mL daily	30 mg daily	40 mg daily	1320 mg monthly	50 mg daily	55 mg daily	60 mg daily	70 mg daily	80 mg daily	90 mg daily	100 mg daily	25 x 5 mg/5 mL daily	150 mg daily	200 mg daily	6400 mg monthly	360 mg daily	500 mg daily	600 mg daily	1000 mg daily	1000 mg one time	1200 mg daily	1250 mg daily
1	1	4	1	1	1	3	2	1	1	1	1	1	2	4	2	1	1	1	1	1	2	1	25	1	1	1	1	1	1	6	2	12	3	2	1	1	2	1	7	11	1	4	1	1	20	3	1	1	21	1	8	9	1	5	1	22	2	6	1	3	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	3	1

Stop Reasons

Why Patients Stopped Taking Prednisone (multiple reasons could be selected)
Reason	# Patients	Percentage of patients
Course of treatment ended	294	71%
Doctor's advice	65	16%
Side effects too severe	40	10%
Other	28	7%
Did not seem to work	24	6%
Not indicated	21	5%
Personal research	6	1%
Change in health plan coverage	1	0%

See all 399 patients who’ve stopped taking Prednisone

Duration See details about how long patients take this treatment ▼ Duration Hide details ▲

Currently Taking Prednisone

0-1 month	1-3 months	3-6 months	6 months-1year	1-2 years	2 years or more
8	4	10	14	19	24

Stopped Taking Prednisone

0-1 month	1-3 months	3-6 months	6 months-1year	1-2 years	2 years or more
206	59	31	31	20	52

Adherence, Burden & Cost See details from patient evaluations ▼

Adherence

Taking treatment as prescribed

Always	99	87%
Usually	7	6%
Sometimes	5	4%
Never	3	3%

Burden

Difficulty being on treatment

Very	24	21%
Somewhat	21	18%
A little	15	13%
Not at all	54	47%

Cost

Paid out of pocket

$200+	3	3%
$100-199	0	0%
$50-99	4	4%
$25-49	5	4%
< $25	63	55%

See more information, including instructions, precautions, side effects, and interactions.

Patient Evaluations

See all 114 patient evaluations

R B Hoofenpaw

Sex: M

Sensation: Moderate

Overall: Moderate

Cognition: moderate

Vision: moderate

Speech: moderate

Swallowing: moderate

Upper limb: moderate

Walking: moderate

See profile
R B Hoofenpaw

70mg as needed

since May 01, 2009
Efficacy Major for Other
Side Effects Mild
Advice/Tips Use judiciously and make certain it is under a doctor's orders. Do check out the latest research on prednisone vs Solu-Medrol and duration between relapses. See full evaluation

MSmary

Sex: F

Sensation: Severe

Overall: Mild

Cognition: moderate

Vision: mild

Speech: mild

Swallowing: mild

Upper limb: mild

Walking: moderate

See profile
MSmary

10 mg all the time (24/7)

since Mar 05, 2009
Efficacy Slight for relapse
Side Effects Mild
Advice/Tips Normally when I get put on a prednisone taper- I feel like super woman- I have more energy than one person can contain (Last time I literally tore my closet ... See full evaluation

slowrambler

Sex: M

Sensation: Moderate

Overall: None

Cognition: none

Vision: none

Speech: none

Swallowing: none

Upper limb: none

Walking: moderate

See profile
slowrambler

2.5mg as needed

since Feb 09, 2009
Efficacy Moderate for Other
Side Effects Severe
Advice/Tips Use only what you need to bring you down from the massive steroid amount received from your infusion. I've found that the quicker I can rid myself of all of ... See full evaluation

See all 114 patient evaluations

Report created on March 20, 2010.

PatientsLikeMe ™

Prednisone Treatment Report

What is Prednisone?

Reasons taken & Efficacy

Side Effects

Dosages

Stop Reasons

Duration See details about how long patients take this treatment ▼ Duration Hide details ▲

Adherence, Burden & Cost See details from patient evaluations ▼

Patient Evaluations

See all 114 patient evaluations

Forum

1000mg as needed	100 mg as needed	10mg as needed	1200 mg as needed	1200mg as needed	20 mg as needed	20mg as needed	2.5 mg as needed	2.5mg as needed	25mg as needed	40mg as needed	4 5mg/5mL as needed	50 mg as needed	5 10mg as needed	5mg/5mL as needed	5mg as needed	60 mg as needed	60mg as needed	6 1mg as needed	70mg as needed	75mg as needed	80 mg as needed	8 20mg as needed	daily	2.5 mg yearly	5 mg/5 mL monthly	2.5 mg weekly	5 mg/5 mL weekly	5 mg weekly	1 mg daily	10 mg weekly	2 mg daily	2.5 mg daily	20 mg weekly	3 mg daily	3.5 mg daily	120 mg monthly	4 mg daily	30 mg weekly	5 mg/5 mL daily	5 mg daily	7 mg daily	7.5 mg daily	8 mg daily	60 mg weekly	10 mg daily	15 mg daily	3 x 5 mg/5 mL daily	600 mg monthly	20 mg daily	5 x 5 mg/5 mL daily	30 mg daily	40 mg daily	1320 mg monthly	50 mg daily	55 mg daily	60 mg daily	70 mg daily	80 mg daily	90 mg daily	100 mg daily	25 x 5 mg/5 mL daily	150 mg daily	200 mg daily	6400 mg monthly	360 mg daily	500 mg daily	600 mg daily	1000 mg daily	1000 mg one time	1200 mg daily	1250 mg daily
1	1	4	1	1	1	3	2	1	1	1	1	1	2	4	2	1	1	1	1	1	2	1	25	1	1	1	1	1	1	6	2	12	3	2	1	1	2	1	7	11	1	4	1	1	20	3	1	1	21	1	8	9	1	5	1	22	2	6	1	3	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	3	1

1000mg as needed	100 mg as needed	10mg as needed	1200 mg as needed	1200mg as needed	20 mg as needed	20mg as needed	2.5 mg as needed	2.5mg as needed	25mg as needed	40mg as needed	4 5mg/5mL as needed	50 mg as needed	5 10mg as needed	5mg/5mL as needed	5mg as needed	60 mg as needed	60mg as needed	6 1mg as needed	70mg as needed	75mg as needed	80 mg as needed	8 20mg as needed	daily	2.5 mg yearly	5 mg/5 mL monthly	2.5 mg weekly	5 mg/5 mL weekly	5 mg weekly	1 mg daily	10 mg weekly	2 mg daily	2.5 mg daily	20 mg weekly	3 mg daily	3.5 mg daily	120 mg monthly	4 mg daily	30 mg weekly	5 mg/5 mL daily	5 mg daily	7 mg daily	7.5 mg daily	8 mg daily	60 mg weekly	10 mg daily	15 mg daily	3 x 5 mg/5 mL daily	600 mg monthly	20 mg daily	5 x 5 mg/5 mL daily	30 mg daily	40 mg daily	1320 mg monthly	50 mg daily	55 mg daily	60 mg daily	70 mg daily	80 mg daily	90 mg daily	100 mg daily	25 x 5 mg/5 mL daily	150 mg daily	200 mg daily	6400 mg monthly	360 mg daily	500 mg daily	600 mg daily	1000 mg daily	1000 mg one time	1200 mg daily	1250 mg daily
1	1	4	1	1	1	3	2	1	1	1	1	1	2	4	2	1	1	1	1	1	2	1	25	1	1	1	1	1	1	6	2	12	3	2	1	1	2	1	7	11	1	4	1	1	20	3	1	1	21	1	8	9	1	5	1	22	2	6	1	3	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	3	1

PatientsLikeMe ™

Prednisone Treatment Report

What is Prednisone?

Reasons taken & Efficacy

Side Effects

Dosages

Stop Reasons

Duration See details about how long patients take this treatment ▼ Duration Hide details ▲

Adherence, Burden & Cost See details from patient evaluations ▼ Adherence, Burden & Cost Hide details ▲

Patient Evaluations

See all 114 patient evaluations

Forum

Adherence, Burden & Cost See details from patient evaluations ▼

1000mg as needed	100 mg as needed	10mg as needed	1200 mg as needed	1200mg as needed	20 mg as needed	20mg as needed	2.5 mg as needed	2.5mg as needed	25mg as needed	40mg as needed	4 5mg/5mL as needed	50 mg as needed	5 10mg as needed	5mg/5mL as needed	5mg as needed	60 mg as needed	60mg as needed	6 1mg as needed	70mg as needed	75mg as needed	80 mg as needed	8 20mg as needed	daily	2.5 mg yearly	5 mg/5 mL monthly	2.5 mg weekly	5 mg/5 mL weekly	5 mg weekly	1 mg daily	10 mg weekly	2 mg daily	2.5 mg daily	20 mg weekly	3 mg daily	3.5 mg daily	120 mg monthly	4 mg daily	30 mg weekly	5 mg/5 mL daily	5 mg daily	7 mg daily	7.5 mg daily	8 mg daily	60 mg weekly	10 mg daily	15 mg daily	3 x 5 mg/5 mL daily	600 mg monthly	20 mg daily	5 x 5 mg/5 mL daily	30 mg daily	40 mg daily	1320 mg monthly	50 mg daily	55 mg daily	60 mg daily	70 mg daily	80 mg daily	90 mg daily	100 mg daily	25 x 5 mg/5 mL daily	150 mg daily	200 mg daily	6400 mg monthly	360 mg daily	500 mg daily	600 mg daily	1000 mg daily	1000 mg one time	1200 mg daily	1250 mg daily
1	1	4	1	1	1	3	2	1	1	1	1	1	2	4	2	1	1	1	1	1	2	1	25	1	1	1	1	1	1	6	2	12	3	2	1	1	2	1	7	11	1	4	1	1	20	3	1	1	21	1	8	9	1	5	1	22	2	6	1	3	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	3	1