II. Indications
- Acute Asthma Exacerbation
- Anti-inflammatory and Immunosuppresive Agent
- Nephrotic Syndrome
- Multiple Sclerosis
- Primary Adrenal Insufficiency
III. Mechanism
- See Systemic Corticosteroid
- Prednisolone, other than not requiring first-pass metabolism, is identical to its prodrug Prednisone
- Intermediate activity duration (longer than Hydrocortisone, shorter than Dexamethasone)
- Intermediate Glucocorticoid (5 fold more than Hydrocortisone) activity
- Low mineralcorticoid activity (half that of Hydrocortisone)
IV. Medications
- Prednisolone (Prelone) Tablets: 5 mg
- Prednisolone (Orapred ODT) Orally Disintegrating Tablets: 10 mg, 15 mg, 30 mg
- Prednisolone (Prelone) Syrup: 15 mg/5 ml
- Prednisolone (Prelone, Pediapred) Solution: 5 mg/5 ml, 10 mg/5 ml, 15 mg/5 ml, 20 mg/5ml, 25 mg 5 ml
- Other non-systemic formulations
- See Ophthalmic Corticosteroid (for Prednisolone acetate drops)
V. Dosing
-
General
- See specific conditions for dosing protocols
- Prednisone dosing is equivalent to Prednisolone dosing
- Adult
- Dose 5 to 60 mg orally daily
- Child
- Dose: 1-2 mg/kg/day (up to 60 mg/day) orally daily or divided twice daily
- Maximum: 60 mg per day
VI. Pharmacokinetics
- Requires no first pass metabolism via the liver (unlike Prednisone)
- Medium potency
- Medium anti-inflammatory potency
- Has Mineralocorticoid Activity
- Medium Half-Life (~36 hours)
VII. Adverse Effects
VIII. Safety
- See Systemic Corticosteroid
- Pregnancy Category C
- Considered safe in Lactation
IX. Resources
- Prednisolone Table and Solutions (DailyMed)
- Prednisolone Syrup (DailyMed)
- Prednisolone ODT or Orapred ODT (DailyMed)
X. References
- Swadron and Hope in Herbert (2018) EM:Rap 18(9):16-8
- Dvorin (2020) Am Fam Physician 101(2): 89-94 [PubMed]
- Lane (1998) Endocrinol Metab Clin North Am 27:465-83 [PubMed]
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Related Studies
| prednisolone (on 12/21/2022 at Medicaid.Gov Survey of pharmacy drug pricing) | ||
| PREDNISOLONE 15 MG/5 ML SOLN | Generic | $0.11 per ml |
| PREDNISOLONE 5 MG/5 ML SOLN | Generic | $0.56 per ml |
| PREDNISOLONE AC 1% EYE DROP | Generic | $5.19 per ml |
| PREDNISOLONE SOD 1% EYE DROP | Generic | $4.54 per ml |