Omnacortil 20 Mg

Description

About Omnacortil 20 mg

Omnacortil 20 mg is a prescription tablet containing 20 mg of prednisolone, made by Macleods Pharmaceuticals, used for moderate to severe flares of inflammatory conditions such as asthma attacks, COPD exacerbations, severe allergic reactions and autoimmune disease. Two tablets provide the 40 mg daily dose widely used in short “burst” courses, which makes this a practical strength for acute treatment.

How does Omnacortil work?

Prednisolone is a corticosteroid that turns off inflammatory pathways inside cells. In the lungs it reduces swelling and mucus in the airway lining and helps reliever inhalers work properly again. In allergic and autoimmune flares, it quiets the immune reaction that is causing damage. Improvement usually starts within hours, although the full benefit builds over several days.

Short courses for asthma and COPD flares

For an adult asthma attack, guidelines usually advise 40–50 mg of prednisolone once daily for at least five days; for a COPD flare, 30 mg daily for five days is common in the UK, and US practice often uses 40 mg of prednisone. Children receive a weight-based dose, typically 1–2 mg/kg a day up to a maximum of 40 mg. Courses this short can normally be stopped without tapering unless your doctor advises otherwise. Needing two or more steroid courses in a year suggests your asthma needs a review of its long-term control.

How to take Omnacortil 20 mg

• Take the tablets together as one morning dose, with breakfast.
• Swallow them with a full glass of water.
• Keep taking your preventer inhaler and carry your reliever; steroid tablets do not replace them.
• If treatment lasts longer than three weeks, your doctor will reduce the dose in stages.

When to call for emergency help

Steroid tablets need several hours to take effect. If breathing becomes very hard, your reliever helps little or not at all, your lips turn blue or you cannot finish a sentence, call 911 or your local emergency number at once. In anaphylaxis, epinephrine (adrenaline) is the first treatment, not prednisolone.

What are the side effects?

Short courses at this dose often bring a bigger appetite, poor sleep, a wired or irritable feeling, indigestion and higher blood sugar, so people with diabetes should test more often. These effects fade after the course ends. Repeated or prolonged treatment carries risks of weight gain, osteoporosis, cataracts, high blood pressure and infections. Get urgent medical attention for severe mood changes or confusion, black stools or vomiting blood, intense abdominal pain, problems with your vision, or signs of a serious infection.

Who should not take it?

Avoid prednisolone if you have a systemic fungal infection or have reacted to it before. Tell your doctor about diabetes, hypertension, stomach ulcers, glaucoma, tuberculosis, heart failure or any history of mental illness. Taking ibuprofen, naproxen or aspirin alongside it raises the chance of stomach bleeding, and fluoroquinolone antibiotics such as ciprofloxacin add to the risk of tendon injury. If you are not immune and come into contact with chickenpox or measles, seek advice without delay. During pregnancy or breastfeeding it is used when a doctor judges the benefit worthwhile.

Pack sizes and storage

Supplied in strips of 10 tablets, in packs of 30, 60 or 90, from $6.00. Store at room temperature, dry and out of children’s sight and reach.

Frequently asked questions

Can I just stop after five days?

For a standard short burst, usually yes, if that is what your doctor prescribed. Longer or repeated courses need a taper.

Is there a higher or lower strength?

Omnacortil 40 mg gives 40 mg in a single tablet, while Omnacortil 5 mg suits smaller doses.

How can I prevent future flares?

Regular preventer treatment matters most. Our guide to asthma inhalers explains the options, and the asthma category lists them.

Background reading for patients, not a replacement for seeing your own clinician. Omnacortil 20 mg is a prescription steroid; take it exactly as your prescriber directs.