pharmacokinetics
Last reviewed 01/2018
Corticosteroids travel in the plasma freely and bound to albumin and corticosteroid binding globulin (CBG). The latter has an affinity only for endogenous compounds and carries the majority of corticosteroid under physiological conditions.
The half life of corticosteroids is dependent on their structure and the need for prior activation e.g. prednisone to prednisolone:
- cortisone 0.5 hours
- hydrocortisone 1.5 hours
- prednisolone 3 hours
- dexamethasone 4 hours
Excretion is renally after reduction of the C3 ketone and then substitution with a sulphate or glucuronic acid group.