Common short-term prednisone side effects include nausea, weight gain and headaches. More serious side effects include fetal toxicity, allergic reactions and high blood pressure. Prednisone side effects are more likely to occur with larger doses or long-term therapy.
Short-term treatment (7–14 days) with oral prednisone is used for many acute inflammatory and allergic conditions.
Some side effects, such as stomach upset or mood changes, can happen straight away. Others, such as getting a rounder face, happen after weeks or months.
Steroids do not tend to cause significant side effects if they're taken for a short time or at a low dose. But sometimes they can cause unpleasant side effects, such as an increased appetite, mood changes and difficulty sleeping (insomnia). This is most common with steroid tablets.
The good news is that if you're taking this medication for a short time — say, less than 5 days — you'll likely have few, if any, side effects, says Soliman. There's no limit on how long you can take prednisone.
The most serious prednisone side effects usually include allergic reactions, infections, gastrointestinal issues and elevated blood sugar. These may occur when people take larger doses or take the medication for long-term treatment.
Low dose prednisolone does have side effects, but so do non-steroidal anti-inflammatory and slow acting drugs, and the symptomatic effect is so large and the disease modifying effect so unique, that prednisolone should be used, at least intermittently.
Short-dose oral corticosteroids are associated with gastrointestinal bleeding, sepsis, and heart failure, even among young patients.
There aren't usually any severe side effects if you take steroid injections, a steroid inhaler, or a short course of steroid tablets. However, prolonged treatment at high doses can cause problems in some people.
This depends on your health problem or condition. You may only need a short course of prednisolone for up to 1 week. You may need to take it for longer, even for many years or the rest of your life.
Taking prednisone for a short period of time can cause side effects like changes in appetite and mood, sweating, and trouble sleeping. People taking it long term can experience weight gain, high blood pressure, cataracts, and osteoporosis. Thinner skin and getting sick more often are also common complaints.
This medicine may cause changes in mood or behavior for some patients. Tell your doctor right away if you have depression, mood swings, a false or unusual sense of well-being, trouble with sleeping, or personality changes while taking this medicine.
Prednisone has a tendency to raise the level of glucose, or sugar, in the blood, which can cause increased body fat or diabetes in some people. It is important to avoid "simple" carbohydrates and concentrated sweets, such as cakes, pies, cookies, jams, honey, chips, breads, candy and other highly processed foods.
When a person stops taking prednisone or other steroids abruptly, they may notice symptoms similar to adrenal insufficiency. These include lethargy, low appetite, weight loss, and a general feeling of being unwell. Prednisone is a corticosteroid that doctors prescribe to treat swelling and inflammation.
You can reduce the risk of certain side effects like insomnia by taking the drug earlier in the day. Other side effects like weight gain, mood swings, and osteoporosis may be reduced with lifestyle changes like diet, exercise, and improved sleep habits.
Taking steroid tablets for less than 3 weeks is unlikely to cause any significant long-term side effects. But you may get some side effects if you need to take them for longer, at a high dose or if you need frequent courses.
Side Effects of Prednisone
Serious side effects include difficulty breathing or swallowing, vomiting, high blood pressure, seizures and fetal toxicity. Many people experience little to no side effects from taking prednisone, although women are more likely to have them.
Official answer. It's best to take prednisone as a single dose once a day straight after breakfast. For example if your dose is 30mg daily, it's usual to take 6 tablets (6 x 5mg) all at the same time after breakfast. Prednisone is a type of medicine known as a corticosteroid or steroid.
Self-care tips: Low cholesterol diet may help. If you develop signs suggesting heart problem, such as chest pain, get medical attention quickly. Work with your physician to address any heart risks that can be modified, such as exercise, weight and cholesterol level.
Prednisone generally works very quickly — usually within one to four days — if the prescribed dose is adequate to reduce your particular level of inflammation.
The fear of using corticosteroids is so common that it has its own name: corticophobia. For topical steroids, this fear stems from well-known and severe adverse effects like Cushing syndrome and permanent skin atrophy.
Side effects associated with low dose (7.5 mg/day or less) daily prednisone are less severe than those seen with higher doses (greater than 30mg/day) and can usually be managed with precautions.
However, prolonged use can cause immunosuppression, muscle wasting, bone changes, fluid shifts, and personality changes. For these reasons, prednisone is usually only prescribed short-term.