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If you have ever been prescribed steroids, did they have a noticeable effect on your blood glucose levels?
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Something is weird here… I responded to a different question as “Other” but was brought to this Comments section.
Anyway, YES.. steroids send me into the stratosphere. About two hours prior to getting a steroid shot, I increase my basal to 200% of my norm, and leave it there for about three days, and slowly move it downward. In all, the effect lasts for about a week. It’s hellish.
Wow. For me, this is like asking “Is the Pope a catholic?” question. Will those of you who answered “no” please explain your physiological / metabolical defiance of gravity answer?
I’ve had steroids injected into my neck and hand and each time it was like my insulin changed into tap water. My doses both basal and bolus increased dramatically starting about 4 hour post injection.
I have gotten cortisone shots in various joints with a short lived period of hyperglycemia afterwards. I just increased my basal rate until it subsided.
Steroids always affect blood sugars, both the pills and the injections. Sure they help the pain and reduce swelling, but is it worth the agony of trying to get sugars under control while they work on the body!!!!!
My rheumatologist gave me a steroid shot to help my pain until the methotrexate kicked in. For the next three days, my BG was 250 to 300 and I couldn’t get it to go down. Did corrections, did higher boluses, stopped eating carbs, changed my insulin pod. Finally, I wondered if it was the shot and googled it. The next day, I was pretty much back to normal. You can bet at my next appointment I told her that she forgot to warn me about high BG from the shot.
Yes, I hope to NEVER have to take oral steroids again, as it was so frustrating running high and struggling to get below 200mg/dl. Localized steroid injections for a torn up shoulder had a very negligible effect that only lasted a day or so.
Very similar to the previous comments. Steroids raise my blood sugars out of control. I’m constantly increasing my insulin dosage. Very hard to get BG numbers back down. But, steroids were necessary at the time.
I’ve only had a steroid prescribed once and was not told about its effect on blood glucose so I was caught completely by surprise by the shocking elevation. I was on MDI so it was much harder to manage than on a pump. Another reason I’m grateful to be back on a pump.
Yes! I was taking double my normal insulin and still could not keep my BG below 200. If your doctor prescribes oral steroids, this should be a warning sign to you that they know very little about diabetes.
If injected of course they will sometimes for many days, probably depends on the dose of steroid.
Required 2.5 times the amount of insulin usually used for at least 3-4 days and out of usual range for 6 days.
Probably 20 years ago I made the mistake of having 3 trigger fingers injected with cortisone at one appointment. My hand surgeon offered the option so I wouldn’t have to have 2 more appts. Within less than 30 minutes My bg went up to 700. I was amazed to still be functioning normally. I was injecting Lantus & Humalog at the time. I don’t remember dosing but my Endo told me I would need to keep hitting it with Humalog until it came down. I began at noon and it took at least 12 hours to get it down. I avoid all steroids if at all possible.
Noticeably higher blood sugars
Yes, definitely. For many years I suffered with bursitis in both hips and the only thing that helped was prednisone shots, half a dose in each hip. My blood glucose level soared for two weeks afterwards but the pain was gone. When the pains returned six weeks later I resisted the prednisone shots for as long as possible by taking heavy doses of ibuprofen. But eventually the pain became unbearable. Eventually I was diagnosed with tendonosis and had procedures to correct that. The pains are mostly gone and I haven’t used any steroids since, thank God.
Many years ago I was prescribed the package of steroid pills that you take for 5 or 7 days (I can’t remember). I fought high numbers the entire time no matter how hard I worked at getting them down. But recently I got stung by a wasp and got a steroid shot that did not really affect my numbers.
Yes, not really a prescription but I’ve had a few sports related shoulder injuries and my orthopedic doctor used cortisone injections as part of my treatment. The effects on my BGs was exactly like having a bad infusion set site where it doesn’t matter how much you pump your BG goes up and stays up.
I’ve been prescribed steroids many times. It definitely affects my blood sugars but I’ve learned how best to deal with that. I create a new Tandem x2 pump profile with increased basal rates and then I can still use my CIQ. I remain on that profile until my blood sugars return to normal.
I usually have to go 2 x pump value as well and sometimes add long acting insulin like lantus
Went crazy high.
I was prescribed once. My BG went to 400+. Very hard to control.
It sends my blood sugar into wacky range
I echo what someone else said: “those who said no, please explain.”
I don’t think it’s physically possible for a steroid to NOT raise BG because it’s an insulin anogist. If someone doesn’t think it had any effect, it’s probably because their BGs were already so out of control, they couldn’t see the signal through the noise.
I’ve taken steroids orally in a couple of extreme occasions but it does disrupt my sugar tremendously.
If you count cortisone injections definite yes. I had trouble with blood sugar for five days extremely high it was like the Insulin didn’t work. One correction after another felt terrible the whole time never again
I took a daily dose of Prednisone for 8 years to treat Polymyalgia Rheumatica. I figured out when the med was at its max in my system and upped my basal for those 4 hours. It raised my BG significantly. I’m really glad to be off the daily dose of steroids but they were the only med that helped the PMR so I needed to take them.
One steroid shot years ago. No noticeable effect. However, my BG goes high when I am stressed out and in pain, so that is the baseline level I was comparing it to.
Anaphylactic shock from a bee sting. ER tried to give me steroids. Refused. High dose benadryl for 10 weeks my endocrinologist not fun but necessary.
I have been prescribed Prednisone on multiple occasions, I have also had occasional cortisone injections for joint issues. Both impacted my BG and made it hard to control for a few days. CGM helped.
Once, when I was suffering from a very bad respiratory infection, my doctor wanted to prescribe steroids. I declined the steroid prescription in favor or something else (that would not work as fast or as effectively) because I did not want to deal with the high BG’s caused by steroids. I would do the same again.
A Cortisone shot in my shoulder eliminated terrible shoulder pain but sent my blood sugar into unmanageable heights, 300-400. It negated the effect of insulin and lasted for weeks.
I put no because it was just drops for my eyes after cataract surgery. I was put on steroids prior to being diabetic and it affected my BG tho’ and was taken off of them. I think it was a year later that I became diabetic. I don’t know if that was a cause or just a sign of things to come.
Not always but at least twice the steroid shots raised blood glucose levels for a week or longer.
Extreme effect. 300-400’s. Once had a severe bleed on the white of the eye due to over- prescribed steroid.
When I was prescribed steroids (assuming you are talking about oral steroids) I didn’t have a CGM, but if I remember correctly, there wasn’t much effect on my bg’s. The first steroid injection I ever hand has really no effect on my bg’s, but subsequent ones have had a major effect.
Broke out with something and was prescribed steroid until could go to dermatologist to control itching. Was diagnosed with Lichen Planus, no known cause, no known cure. Told dr. And she prescribed steroid cream. Doesn’t work as quickly but controls small outbreaks. I was separated from my husband while we were transitioning from MD to FL and I was in charge of working, selling the house, and all the packing. So known cause: stress. And heat can cause it, especially where my tube touches my skin.
I had a steroid injection in my elbow, and my blood sugars were high (300s) for three days, with minimal effect of more insulin.
A few times on oral steroids for severe allergies it was crazy high. Didn’t seem to matter how much insulin I took. So I just decided to itch and not take the steroids. I had a corticosteroid shot for tennis elbow nothing was helping. That made my Blood sugar high for days. I ate almost nothing and it was still high despite taking huge basal rates. I wish that they could do research and find something that you could take with Steroids so you didn’t have such high sugars. I am allergic to NSAIDS so I don’t have much choice for pain except for tylenol which I can’t take too much of or it effects my DexCom G6 readings.
I have had multiple courses of oral steroids over many years for asthma. As others have noted the impact on my glucose was profound. I developed an alternate basal rate for high steroid days and an algorithm to use during days I had to taper off the steroids. It worked imperfectly. Only once did I have a corticosteroid injection in a joint and the impact was even worse. Faded over about 3 days. I never opted for another of these though I suppose I might in extreme circumstances. Fortunately I have moved to an area with better air quality and have not had to use oral steroids for several years. The steroid use gave me fairly debilitating osteoporosis and probably contributed to my early need for cataract surgery. I still use local steroids (Inhalers, nasal spray).
I’m with everybody else!
Yes, profound high blood sugars and also cranky as all get out (maybe from the BSes being high, not the steroid).
I think I stopped increasing my insulin at 300% over normal and still only managed to get BS to 250s… but, then the “steroid dropping off and me going into some kind of crazy low” fear came into play.
I was never so glad to be done with a medication the two times I had to use it.
I put other because I have only describe steroid eye drops for dry eyes. I opted not to take them because I worried about effects on my blood sugar.
I took steroids once since being diagnosed over 10 years ago. They told me it would affect my BG as kind of an afterthought. “Your BG might be a little high for the next few days.” I was totally unprepared. It skyrocketed and I couldn’t bring it down. Went through 3-4 times as much insulin during that period and it still wasn’t enough. I was afraid to eat anything. If they ever tell me they want to put me on steroids again, I’ll be begging them to find another way to treat whatever it is. Never want to deal with that again.
I was given a steroids shot to help with a tendonitis injury, and it made my BGs high (~250, no matter how much insulin I took to try and correct it) for about 48 hours, and then slowly I was able to get back in range again
Just one shot for trigger finger and he gave me a half dose for it my bgs raised a little bit
My blood sugars went extremely high – – over 500mg/dL at the highest dose given in the “steps.”
With prednisone, I have to increase my long-acting by 2.5 to stay in range.