Methylprednisolone acetate 80mg/2ml suspension for injection vials
Requires a prescription from a doctor or prescriber
Shortage warning
Current supply issues
High shortage warning
Healthcare professionals should be aware of the potential for delayed onset of angioedema and the distinction between bradykinin- and histamine-mediated cases, as treatment strategies differ significantly and bradykinin-medi…
Affected areas: UK
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Safety monitoring data
Yellow Card reports
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Suspected adverse reactions reported for Methylprednisolone acetate
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Data from the MHRA Yellow Card scheme. A reported reaction does not necessarily mean the medicine caused it. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
EudraVigilance
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Suspected adverse reactions reported for Methylprednisolone acetate
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3 branded products available
Part of the Medrone brand family (generic: Methylprednisolone acetate)
MHRA licensed products
View all licensed products for Methylprednisolone acetate on the MHRA register
Depo-Medrone 80mg/2ml suspension for injection vials
Depo-Medrone 80mg/2ml suspension for injection vials
This is the NHS Drug Tariff indicative price used for reimbursement purposes. It may not reflect the price paid by patients or pharmacies.
View full Drug TariffSource: NHS Drug Tariff via NHSBSA. Derived from dm+d VMPP (Virtual Medicinal Product Pack) pricing data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
WHO defined daily dose (DDD)
20 mg
Not a recommended dose. The DDD is the assumed average maintenance dose per day for a drug used for its main indication in adults. It is a statistical measure used for research and comparison purposes only.
Source: WHO Collaborating Centre for Drug Statistics Methodology, distributed via the NHS dm+d supplementary BNF/ATC mapping files (NHSBSA). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Therapeutically similar medicines
Similarity is based on WHO Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) classification and on a factual NHS dm+d therapeutic-grouping code prefix. Source data: NHS dm+d via TRUD (OGL v3.0), WHO ATC/DDD Index.
NHS prescribing volume and spending trends
Guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence
NICE clinical guidance(1)
Source: National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Check stock at pharmacies and supply information
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Supply & safety information
Official UK regulator monitoring and safety alerts
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Codes for healthcare professionals and prescribing systems
These codes are used by healthcare IT systems and prescribers to identify this medicine.
NHS UK identifiers
Browse tools
SNOMED CT and dm+d codes from NHS TRUD (Technology Reference data Update Distribution), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. BNF code shown is the factual mapping value distributed by NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) in the dm+d supplementary file under OGL v3.0; it is not affiliated with, nor licensed from, the publishers of the British National Formulary. ATC codes from the WHO Collaborating Centre for Drug Statistics Methodology (whocc.no).
Active and completed clinical studies from ClinicalTrials.gov
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health (NIH). Data accessed via ClinicalTrials.gov API v2. Trial information is provided for research purposes and does not constitute medical advice.
Academic studies and reviews for this medicine's active substance
Showing the 50 most relevant studies.
Reviews & meta-analyses: 7 · Randomised trials: 16 · 1979–2026
Showing the 50 most relevant studies, sorted by most relevant.
P. Natsios, L. Golini, Brian H. Park, et al.
The Veterinary Record, 2024
Maryam Amizadeh, Fereshteh Fazlinezhad, Mahdi Ranjbar, et al.
Scientific Reports, 2025
Intratympanic injection of methylprednisolone acetate is considered to be one of the effective drugs in the treatment of sudden sensorineural hearing loss. In this study, the efficacy of intratympanic injection of methylprednisolone acetate nanogel in patients with sudden sensorineural hearing loss was investigated. It is a double-blind randomized clinical trial in one of Iran’s hospitals. 96 patients diagnosed with sudden sensorineural hearing loss were examined. The intervention group (40 patients) was treated with intratympanic nanogel form of methylprednisolone acetate (four times, one day in between) along with oral prednisolone, and the control group (56 patients) was treated with the usual ampoule form of methylprednisolone acetate along with oral prednisolone. The patients were followed up two weeks and two months after the treatment by checking the audiometric findings. 22.9% of all patients had complete response to treatment and 58.3% partial response to treatment. Complete response to treatment was more common in patients of the intervention group, and non-response to treatment was more common in the control group. The frequency of tinnitus two months after the start of treatment was significantly lower in the intervention group, but the frequency of dizziness was not significantly different between the two groups. In both groups, a significant improvement in audiometric findings was observed after treatment compared to before treatment (p < 0.0001). In both groups, a significant improvement in audiometric findings was observed after treatment compared to before treatment (p < 0.0001), and this improvement rate was slightly higher in the intervention group than in the control group. Combined treatment of systemic steroid with both nanogel and or conventional intratympanic methylprednisolone acetate can be effective in the treatment of sudden sensorineural hearing loss, but the effectiveness of the nanogel form of the drug is slightly higher. Therefore, drug transfer based on nanogels can be considered to achieve better treatment results.
Abstract licence: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
Mohammadjavad Hadianfard, Seyedeh Niloofar Sepehrtaj, Lale Zare
Journal of Acupuncture Research, 2024
Background: Shoulder pain is the third most common musculoskeletal complaint. Nonspecific shoulder pain (NSSP) refers to shoulder pain with nonidentifiable pathological causes. In this study, the effects of corticosteroid injection at the Jianqian acupoint were compared with those of oral piroxicam in patients with NSSP. Methods: This single-blind randomized clinical trial involved 58 patients who were randomly allocated into two groups. The piroxicam group took two capsules of piroxicam per day for 2 weeks. The methylprednisolone group received injections of 1 mL of methylprednisolone acetate 40 mg/mL at the Jianqian acupoint. The primary endpoints were pain and function assessed with the visual analog scale (VAS), Oxford shoulder score (OSS), and Shoulder Pain and Disability Index (SPADI). The secondary endpoints were shoulder abduction and degree of flexion. Data were collected before and after treatment at 2, 4, and 8 weeks. Results: Both groups showed significant improvements in the primary and secondary endpoints during follow-ups (p < 0.001). A significant difference was noted in the VAS scores in all follow-ups (p < 0.05) and OSS, SPADI scores, and shoulder abduction and degree of flexion at weeks 4 and 8 (p < 0.001) between the two groups. Conclusion: Therefore, compared with oral piroxicam, methylprednisolone acetate injection at the Jianqian acupoint is an effective treatment for NSSP in terms of pain reduction and functional improvement.
Abstract licence: CC BY-NC-ND
Vishnu Bhardwaj, Mahesh Kumar Meena, Astha Patni
Indian Journal of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, 2026
O. Scaglietti, P. Marchetti, P. Bartolozzi
The Journal of bone and joint surgery. British volume, 1979
Ashwani Kumar, V. Dhir, S. Sharma, et al.
Clinical therapeutics, 2017
Muhammad Akhtar, Syed Faraz ul Hassan Shah Gillani, R. Nadeem, et al.
JPMA. The Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association, 2020
M. Battaglia, F. Guaraldi, D. Gori, et al.
Acta Radiologica, 2017
O. Scaglietti, P. Marchetti, P. Bartolozzi
Clinical orthopaedics and related research, 1982
R. Das, N. Bimol, D. Deb, et al.
Journal of Medical Society, 2021
Sources: aggregated from Europe PMC (EMBL-EBI), OpenAlex, Crossref, PubMed and other open scholarly databases. Retracted articles are excluded. Study information is provided for research purposes and does not constitute medical advice.
Pharmacology and chemical data from DrugBank
Key facts
Drug status
Approved
Major interactions
None known
Half-life
2.3h
Mechanism
The short term effects of corticosteroids are decreased vasodilation and permeab…
Food interactions
2 warnings
Human targets
2 targets
Data: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0
Pharmacokinetics at a glance
Absorption
89.9%
Half-life
2.3h
[A188757][A188802]
Protein binding
76.8%
[A188757]…
Volume of distribution
1.38L/kg
[A188757]
Metabolism
[A188757]…
Elimination
25-31%
[A188766]…
Clearance
336mL
[A188757]
Pharmacokinetic data: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0
Methylprednisolone was granted FDA approval on 24 October 1957.[L10785] In the outbreak of COVID-19, low dose methylprednisolone-based therapy was successful in treating COVID-19-associated pneumonia in one patient with long-term immunosuppression.[A192813] The efficacy of methylprednisolone in novel coronavirus pneumonia is being investigated further in clinical trials.[L12666]
[L10785][L10788]
Intra-articular and soft tissue injections are indicated for short term treatment of acute gouty arthritis, acute and subactute bursitis, acute nonspecific tenosynovitis, epicondylitis, rheumatoid arthritis, and synovitis of osteoarthritis.
[L10788]
Intralesional injections are indicated for alopecia areata, discoid lupus erythematosus, keloids, lichen planus, lichen simplex chronicus and psoriatic plaques, necrobiosis lipoidica diabeticorum, and localized hypertrophic infiltrated inflammatory lesions of granuloma annulare.
[L10788]
Known interactions with other medications. Always consult a healthcare professional.
Showing 50 of 1180 interactions
[L10824]
The intraperitoneal LD50 in mice is 2292mg/kg and in rats is 100mg/kg.
[L10824]
Data regarding acute overdoses of glucocorticoids are rare.
[L10785][L10788]
Chronic high doses of glucocorticoids can lead to the development of cataract, glaucoma, hypertension, water retention, hyperlipidemia, peptic ulcer, pancreatitis, myopathy, osteoporosis, mood changes, psychosis, dermal atrophy, allergy, acne, hypertrichosis, immune suppression, decreased resistance to infection, moon face, hyperglycemia, hypocalcemia, hypophosphatemia, metabolic acidosis, growth suppression, and secondary adrenal insufficiency.
[A188405]
Treat acute overdoses with symptomatic and supportive therapy, while chronic overdoses will require temporarily reduced dosages.
[A188405][L10788]
Glucocorticoids inhibit neutrophil apoptosis and demargination; they inhibit phospholipase A2, which decreases the formation of arachidonic acid derivatives; they inhibit NF-Kappa B and other inflammatory transcription factors; they promote anti-inflammatory genes like interleukin-10.[A187463]
Lower doses of corticosteroids provide an anti-inflammatory effect, while higher doses are immunosuppressive.[A187463] High doses of glucocorticoids for an extended period bind to the mineralocorticoid receptor, raising sodium levels and decreasing potassium levels.[A187463]
How the body processes this drug — absorption, distribution, metabolism, and elimination
[A188802]
Intravitreal methylprednisolone has a Tmax of 2.5h.
[A188808]
Approximately 1/10 of an oral or IV dose of methylprednisolone will reach the vitreous humor.
[A188808]
Further data regarding the absorption of methylprednisolone are not readily available.
[L10785][L10788]
[A188757][A188802]
[A188757]
Methylprednisolone is bound to human serum albumin in plasma.
[A187147]
[A188757]
[A188757]
[A188766]
A study in dogs showed 25-31% elimination in urine and 44-52% elimination in feces.
[A188799]
[A188757]
Proteins and enzymes this drug interacts with in the body
PMID:27120390 PMID:37478846
Has a dual mode of action: as a transcription factor that binds to glucocorticoid response elements (GRE), both for nuclear and mitochondrial DNA, and as a modulator of other transcription factors .
PMID:28139699
Affects inflammatory responses, cellular proliferation and differentiation in target tissues. Involved in chromatin remodeling .
PMID:9590696
Plays a role in rapid mRNA degradation by binding to the 5' UTR of target mRNAs and interacting with PNRC2 in a ligand-dependent manner which recruits the RNA helicase UPF1 and the mRNA-decapping enzyme DCP1A, leading to RNA decay .
PMID:25775514
Could act as a coactivator for STAT5-dependent transcription upon growth hormone (GH) stimulation and could reveal an essential role of hepatic GR in the control of body growth (By similarity)
PMID:8425544
Plays a role in glucocorticoid-mediated down-regulation of the early phase of the inflammatory response (By similarity). Contributes to the adaptive immune response by enhancing signaling cascades that are triggered by T-cell activation, regulates differentiation and proliferation of activated T-cells .
PMID:17008549
Promotes the differentiation of T-cells into Th1 cells and negatively regulates differentiation into Th2 cells .
PMID:17008549
Has no effect on unstimulated T cells .
PMID:17008549
Negatively regulates hormone exocytosis via activation of the formyl peptide receptors and reorganization of the actin cytoskeleton .
PMID:19625660
Has high affinity for Ca(2+) and can bind up to eight Ca(2+) ions (By similarity).
Displays Ca(2+)-dependent binding to phospholipid membranes .
PMID:2532504 PMID:8557678
Plays a role in the formation of phagocytic cups and phagosomes. Plays a role in phagocytosis by mediating the Ca(2+)-dependent interaction between phagosomes and the actin cytoskeleton (By similarity)
Enzymes involved in drug metabolism — important for understanding drug interactions
Proteins that transport this drug across cell membranes
PMID:2897240 PMID:35970996 PMID:8898203 PMID:9038218 PMID:35507548
Catalyzes the flop of phospholipids from the cytoplasmic to the exoplasmic leaflet of the apical membrane. Participates mainly to the flop of phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine, beta-D-glucosylceramides and sphingomyelins .
PMID:8898203
Energy-dependent efflux pump responsible for decreased drug accumulation in multidrug-resistant cells PMID:2897240 PMID:35970996 PMID:9038218
Proteins that carry this drug through the body
PMID:19021548
Major calcium and magnesium transporter in plasma, binds approximately 45% of circulating calcium and magnesium in plasma (By similarity).
Potentially has more than two calcium-binding sites and might additionally bind calcium in a non-specific manner (By similarity). The shared binding site between zinc and calcium at residue Asp-273 suggests a crosstalk between zinc and calcium transport in the blood (By similarity). The rank order of affinity is zinc > calcium > magnesium (By similarity).
Binds to the bacterial siderophore enterobactin and inhibits enterobactin-mediated iron uptake of E.coli from ferric transferrin, and may thereby limit the utilization of iron and growth of enteric bacteria such as E.coli .
PMID:6234017
Does not prevent iron uptake by the bacterial siderophore aerobactin PMID:6234017
ATC D07AA01
ATC D10AA02
ATC H02AB04
ATC H02BX01
ATC D07CA02
ATC S03CA07
ATC S01CA08
Chemical identifiers
CAS, UNII, InChI Key and database cross-references
Show
Chemical identifiers
CAS, UNII, InChI Key and database cross-references
Linked compound data from DrugBank Open Data (CC BY-NC 4.0)
Methylprednisolone
Matched from: Methylprednisolone acetate
Additional database identifiers
Drugs Product Database (DPD)
7626
Drugs Product Database (DPD)
7624
Drugs Product Database (DPD)
7621
ChemSpider
6485
BindingDB
50103616
ZINC
ZINC000003875560
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:7978
GenAtlas
NR3C1
GeneCards
NR3C1
GenBank Gene Database
X03225
GenBank Protein Database
31680
Guide to Pharmacology
625
UniProt Accession
GCR_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:533
GenAtlas
ANXA1
GeneCards
ANXA1
GenBank Gene Database
BC001275
GenBank Protein Database
12654863
UniProt Accession
ANXA1_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:384
GenAtlas
AKR1C1
GeneCards
AKR1C1
GenBank Gene Database
M86609
GenBank Protein Database
181549
UniProt Accession
AK1C1_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:385
GenAtlas
AKR1C2
GeneCards
AKR1C2
GenBank Gene Database
U05598
GenBank Protein Database
531160
UniProt Accession
AK1C2_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:386
GenAtlas
AKR1C3
GeneCards
AKR1C3
GenBank Gene Database
S68288
GenBank Protein Database
4261711
Guide to Pharmacology
1382
UniProt Accession
AK1C3_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:387
GenAtlas
AKR1C4
GeneCards
AKR1C4
GenBank Gene Database
S68287
GenBank Protein Database
4261710
UniProt Accession
AK1C4_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:5208
GenAtlas
HSD11B1
GeneCards
HSD11B1
GenBank Gene Database
M76665
GenBank Protein Database
179475
Guide to Pharmacology
2763
UniProt Accession
DHI1_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:5209
GenAtlas
HSD11B2
GeneCards
HSD11B2
GenBank Gene Database
U14631
GenBank Protein Database
565082
Guide to Pharmacology
3143
UniProt Accession
DHI2_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2637
GenAtlas
CYP3A4
GeneCards
CYP3A4
GenBank Gene Database
M18907
Guide to Pharmacology
1337
UniProt Accession
CP3A4_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2637
GenAtlas
CYP3A4
GeneCards
CYP3A4
GenBank Gene Database
M18907
Guide to Pharmacology
1337
UniProt Accession
CP3A4_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:17450
GeneCards
CYP3A43
GenBank Gene Database
AF319634
GenBank Protein Database
12642642
UniProt Accession
CP343_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2638
GenAtlas
CYP3A5
GeneCards
CYP3A5
GenBank Gene Database
J04813
GenBank Protein Database
181346
Guide to Pharmacology
1338
UniProt Accession
CP3A5_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2640
GeneCards
CYP3A7
GenBank Gene Database
D00408
GenBank Protein Database
220149
UniProt Accession
CP3A7_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2610
GenAtlas
CYP2A6
GeneCards
CYP2A6
GenBank Gene Database
X13897
Guide to Pharmacology
1321
UniProt Accession
CP2A6_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2597
GenAtlas
CYP1B1
GeneCards
CYP1B1
GenBank Gene Database
U03688
GenBank Protein Database
501031
Guide to Pharmacology
1320
UniProt Accession
CP1B1_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2615
GeneCards
CYP2B6
GenBank Gene Database
M29874
GenBank Protein Database
181296
Guide to Pharmacology
1324
UniProt Accession
CP2B6_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2622
GenAtlas
CYP2C8
GeneCards
CYP2C8
GenBank Gene Database
M17397
Guide to Pharmacology
1325
UniProt Accession
CP2C8_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2621
GeneCards
CYP2C19
GenBank Gene Database
M61854
GenBank Protein Database
181344
Guide to Pharmacology
1328
UniProt Accession
CP2CJ_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2623
GenAtlas
CYP2C9
GeneCards
CYP2C9
GenBank Gene Database
AY341248
Guide to Pharmacology
1326
UniProt Accession
CP2C9_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:399
GenAtlas
ALB
GeneCards
ALB
GenBank Gene Database
V00494
GenBank Protein Database
28590
UniProt Accession
ALBU_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:40
GenAtlas
ABCB1
GeneCards
ABCB1
GenBank Gene Database
M14758
GenBank Protein Database
307180
Guide to Pharmacology
768
UniProt Accession
MDR1_HUMAN
DrugBank citations
If you use DrugBank data in your research, please cite the following publications:
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Structured knowledge from the free knowledge base
Linked open data from Wikidata (Q417222), a free and open knowledge base operated by the Wikimedia Foundation. Data is available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Public Domain Dedication. WHO INN from the World Health Organization.