What problems might result from the prolonged administration of cortisol to a person with severe inflammatory disease?

Answer 1

There is no simple answer to this question regarding cortisol. It is an excellent drug to reduce inflammation on a short term basis, although there will be side effects, such as hunger, inability to sleep, and irritability just to mention a few. These are generally benign symptoms that resolve once the patient is no longer taking the drug. Commonly known as prednisone, this is one of the best drugs we have to treat inflammatory disease. If it is needed on a long term basis, it causes problems. It is very irritating to the body. It suppresses your body's ability to produce it's own cortisol. This is why we gradually lower the dose before discontinuing the drug, thus allowing one's body to respond and resume producing it's own cortisol.(Which is normal). Cortisol is a stress hormone secreted by the adrenal glands. It helps maintain a normal physiologic balance in the body. But too much is trouble. Unfortunately, cortisol is the best thing we have going for us when it comes to treating severe inflammatory disease. Most of these inflammatory diseases are autoimmune in nature, meaning your body recognizes it's own tissue as foreign and mounts an inflammatory response to fight back. Long term issues are weight gain, elevated blood sugar(Diabetes), muscle weakness/wasting, delayed wound healing, osteoporosis(bone disintegration), cataracts, and psychosis. It will prolong quality of life for a time. I hope your situation is a short term one. I hope this information will be helpful to you.