Deltasone (Prednisone) Tablets: Uses, Dosage and Safety Information

Deltasone is a brand name for prednisone, a synthetic corticosteroid taken by mouth to reduce inflammation and suppress an overactive immune response. It may be used for inflammatory, allergic and autoimmune conditions when a systemic treatment is appropriate. The dose and length of treatment vary considerably, so prednisone should be taken according to instructions from a qualified prescriber.

Medicine overview

Each Deltasone tablet contains prednisone and is intended for oral use. We offer tablets in four strengths: 5 mg, 10 mg, 20 mg and 40 mg. Having several strengths allows a prescriber to construct and adjust a dose without treating the strength printed on the pack as a complete regimen in itself.

Prednisone belongs to the corticosteroid class and is related to hydrocortisone and prednisolone. Unlike an anabolic steroid, it does not promote muscle building. It acts more like cortisol, a hormone naturally produced by the adrenal glands, and influences inflammation, immune activity, metabolism and the body's response to stress.

Why prednisone is used

Prednisone is not intended for only one illness. A prescriber may consider systemic corticosteroid treatment for flare-ups or serious manifestations of conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, severe allergy, asthma exacerbations, inflammatory bowel disease, certain skin disorders and autoimmune diseases affecting organs such as the lungs, kidneys, blood or nervous system.

Its role differs between conditions. It may be used as a short course to bring a flare under control, as part of urgent treatment for severe inflammation or, less commonly, as longer-term therapy when other approaches are unsuitable. It does not remove every underlying cause of disease, and it is not a substitute for emergency treatment of an acute severe allergic reaction or sudden severe breathing difficulty.

How prednisone works

After absorption, prednisone is converted mainly in the liver to prednisolone, its principal active form. Prednisolone enters cells and binds to glucocorticoid receptors. The resulting complex changes the activity of genes involved in inflammation and immune function, reducing the production of inflammatory signalling substances and limiting the movement and activity of some immune cells.

This broad mechanism explains both the medicine's usefulness and its limitations. It can reduce swelling, pain, rash, airway inflammation and other consequences of immune overactivity, but it can also weaken infection defences and affect blood glucose, mood, bones, eyes and the body's natural cortisol production. Clinical practice therefore generally favours the lowest effective dose for the shortest period that adequately controls the condition.

Strengths and general dosage principles

We offer Deltasone tablets containing 5 mg, 10 mg, 20 mg or 40 mg of prednisone. The appropriate daily dose depends on the diagnosis, severity, age, other medical conditions and response to treatment. General adult anti-inflammatory or immunosuppressive regimens may range from about 5 mg to 60 mg daily, although doses outside that range may be used for particular conditions under specialist supervision.

Prednisone is often taken once each morning with or just after food. Morning administration can fit more closely with the body's usual cortisol rhythm and may reduce sleep disturbance, while food may lessen indigestion. Some treatment plans use divided doses or alternate-day administration instead. The prescribed instructions take priority over these general principles.

Children require condition-specific or weight-based dosing and monitoring, particularly when treatment is prolonged because systemic corticosteroids can suppress growth. Older people and those with several health conditions may need closer monitoring for effects on bones, blood pressure, blood glucose, infection risk and muscle strength.

A short course does not always require tapering. Gradual dose reduction becomes more important after prolonged treatment, repeated courses, substantial doses or circumstances in which adrenal suppression is likely. Stopping suddenly after the body has reduced its own cortisol production can cause severe tiredness, weakness, nausea, dizziness, low blood pressure or recurrence of the treated condition. A prescriber should decide whether a taper is needed and how quickly it should proceed.

If a dose is missed, the patient information supplied with the medicine or advice from a pharmacist or prescriber should be followed. A double dose should not be taken simply to compensate for one that was forgotten.

Elimination and half-life

Prednisone is absorbed from the digestive tract and converted to prednisolone, after which the medicine and its metabolites are processed and eliminated mainly in the urine. Prednisolone has a plasma half-life of only a few hours, but its biological effects last longer because it alters activity inside cells. This longer biological effect helps explain why once-daily administration can be suitable even though blood concentrations fall sooner.

Improvement may begin within hours in some acute inflammatory conditions, while the full clinical response can take longer. Significant liver disease may impair conversion of prednisone to prednisolone, so a prescriber may consider whether prednisolone or another treatment is more appropriate.

Important points before and during treatment

Prednisone can mask signs of infection and make some infections more severe. A prescriber should know about current fever, an untreated infection, recent contact with chickenpox, shingles or measles, planned vaccination, and any history of tuberculosis. People receiving immunosuppressive corticosteroid doses are generally advised to avoid live vaccines unless a specialist confirms that vaccination is appropriate.

Monitoring may be needed for longer courses or higher doses. Depending on individual risk, this can include blood pressure, blood glucose, weight, bone health, eye health, growth in children and signs that the adrenal glands have become suppressed. People taking long-term systemic corticosteroids may also be advised to carry a steroid treatment card or emergency steroid card.

Pregnancy and breastfeeding require an individual benefit-risk discussion. Systemic corticosteroids cross the placenta, although prednisone is sometimes used during pregnancy when the expected maternal benefit outweighs potential fetal risks. Prednisone is converted to prednisolone, which enters breast milk in small amounts. Short-term maternal doses up to 40 mg daily are unlikely to affect a breastfed infant, but prolonged treatment or higher doses may require additional advice and infant monitoring.

Prednisone can occasionally cause dizziness, blurred vision, agitation, insomnia or other psychiatric effects. Anyone affected should not drive, cycle or operate machinery until the symptoms have resolved and it is safe to do so.

Who should not take it or needs extra care

Deltasone should not be taken by someone with a known allergy to prednisone or another ingredient in the particular tablet. Systemic infection without appropriate anti-infective treatment may also make corticosteroid use unsafe, although a specialist may still use a corticosteroid when it is an essential part of treating a serious condition.

Extra care is commonly needed for people with diabetes, high blood pressure, heart failure, osteoporosis, glaucoma, cataracts, a history of stomach ulcer, epilepsy, kidney or liver disease, myasthenia gravis, thyroid disease, previous corticosteroid-related muscle problems, or a current or previous serious mental health condition. Prednisone can aggravate some of these problems or make their monitoring and treatment more complicated.

Corticosteroids may raise blood glucose and increase the amount of insulin or other glucose-lowering medicine required. They can also cause sodium and fluid retention, lower potassium in susceptible people, increase appetite and affect calcium and bone metabolism. These possibilities do not mean that everyone will experience them, but they help determine the dose, monitoring plan and duration of treatment.

Interactions with medicines, vaccines and alcohol

Prednisone can interact with prescription medicines, non-prescription products and herbal remedies. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen can increase the risk of indigestion, ulceration or gastrointestinal bleeding when combined with a systemic corticosteroid. Anticoagulants such as warfarin may require additional monitoring because the effect on clotting control can vary.

Insulin and other diabetes medicines may become less effective if prednisone raises blood glucose. Diuretics and other medicines that lower potassium can increase the risk of low potassium levels. Rifampicin, carbamazepine, phenytoin and some other enzyme-inducing medicines can reduce corticosteroid exposure, while medicines that inhibit corticosteroid metabolism can increase exposure and adverse effects.

Live vaccines may be unsuitable during immunosuppressive treatment, whereas inactivated vaccines do not contain a live organism but may produce a weaker immune response. Alcohol has no single direct interaction that applies to everyone, but it can add to stomach irritation and may worsen some metabolic or mood-related effects. A pharmacist or prescriber should check the complete medicine list before treatment begins, including supplements and herbal products.

Side effects and what to do

The likelihood and severity of adverse effects generally increase with the daily dose and duration of treatment. Short courses can still cause increased appetite, indigestion, difficulty sleeping, restlessness, sweating, facial flushing, fluid retention or mood changes. Taking the dose in the morning with food may help with insomnia and stomach discomfort when this fits the prescribed regimen.

Longer courses can contribute to weight gain, a rounded face, thinner skin, easy bruising, muscle weakness, osteoporosis, cataracts, glaucoma, high blood pressure, raised blood glucose and increased susceptibility to infection. They may also suppress the adrenal glands, making abrupt withdrawal or severe physical stress potentially dangerous.

Prompt medical advice is important for new visual problems, severe abdominal pain, black or bloody stools, marked swelling, symptoms of very high blood glucose, or signs of an infection that is severe or worsening. Urgent help is also needed for severe depression, mania, hallucinations, confusion or thoughts of self-harm. Call 999 for breathing difficulty, collapse, swelling of the face or throat, or another suspected life-threatening reaction. Suspected adverse reactions can be reported through the MHRA Yellow Card scheme.

Overdose and dosing errors

A single accidental extra dose is not usually expected to cause severe poisoning, but the risk depends on the amount, the person's age and health, and whether excessive doses have been taken repeatedly. Acute corticosteroid overdose may not produce a distinctive set of immediate symptoms, while repeated excessive use can intensify fluid retention, blood glucose changes, blood pressure changes, stomach problems and psychiatric effects.

Anyone who has taken substantially more than directed should contact NHS 111, a pharmacist or a prescriber promptly, even if no symptoms are present. Call 999 if the person collapses, has a seizure, develops severe breathing difficulty or cannot be awakened. Do not induce vomiting. Keep the medicine packaging available so that healthcare professionals can identify the strength and estimate the amount taken.

Storage and disposal

Store Deltasone tablets at 20°C to 25°C; brief excursions between 15°C and 30°C are permitted. Keep the container tightly closed and protect the tablets from moisture. Store all medicines out of the sight and reach of children, and do not use tablets after the stated expiry date.

Unused or expired tablets should be taken to a pharmacy for safe disposal. They should not be flushed down the toilet or discarded in household waste unless a healthcare professional specifically advises otherwise.

Prescription status and our ordering policy

Oral prednisone is a prescription-only medicine in the United Kingdom and is ordinarily supplied under the direction of an appropriate prescriber.

Separately, our ordering policy for this listing does not require a customer to submit a prescription before we accept the order. That checkout requirement does not change prednisone's UK prescription-only classification or replace the need for appropriate clinical assessment and dosing instructions. Our pharmacist-supported team is available by email and online chat 24 hours a day for questions about the product or our ordering process.

Benefits and trade-offs

Prednisone's principal benefit is its ability to act across many inflammatory and immune pathways. This can make it useful when inflammation is severe, affects several parts of the body or needs to be controlled more quickly than a slower-acting treatment can manage. The available tablet strengths also support dose adjustment and gradual reduction when these are clinically appropriate.

The same broad activity creates important trade-offs. Systemic exposure means that the medicine can affect tissues throughout the body rather than only the inflamed area. Risks involving infection, blood glucose, mood, bones, eyes and adrenal function become increasingly important as the dose and treatment duration rise. For chronic disease, a clinician may therefore consider a steroid-sparing medicine or a treatment delivered more directly to the affected area.

Generic prednisone and other corticosteroid options

Deltasone is a prednisone brand. A generic prednisone tablet contains the same active ingredient at its stated strength, but excipients, appearance, regulatory status and availability can differ. A patient should not assume that every overseas or generic product can be substituted without checking with a prescriber or pharmacist.

Prednisolone is a closely related oral corticosteroid and is more commonly used in UK prescribing. It is already in the active form to which prednisone is converted. Although the two medicines have broadly similar corticosteroid effects, they should not be switched or dose-converted without professional guidance.

Some conditions can instead be treated with a more localised corticosteroid, such as an inhaler for airway disease, a cream or ointment for a limited skin condition, a nasal spray for nasal inflammation, or a formulation designed to act within part of the bowel. These are different dosage forms rather than generic equivalents of Deltasone. Non-corticosteroid options, including antihistamines, disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs, biologic medicines or other immunosuppressants, may be appropriate for particular diagnoses. The best choice depends on the site and severity of inflammation, how quickly control is needed, previous treatment and the person's wider health risks.