7 Popular Adrenal Medications
high drug prices
Adrenal health is a topic of debate among many physicians — not that anyone is questioning the role of adrenal glands in overall health and well-being, but rather the extent to which adrenal glands should be treated and how effective the treatment is.
Years ago, some physicians began talking about a condition called “adrenal fatigue,” while others claimed the diagnosis was bogus. With more data and understanding of the human body, researchers have found ways to use the adrenal glands to support overall health and manage chronic conditions.
Let’s talk about popular adrenal medications and how they’re used to manage various medical conditions.
7 Popular Medications for Adrenal Health
Adrenal issues are not typically treated with medication that is designed to help the adrenal glands themselves, but to help regulate the hormones the adrenal glands are (or are not) making.
Essentially, medications designed for adrenal health are using the adrenal glands’ functionality to treat a different disease.
Corticosteroids are often used for this purpose, for reasons that we’ll get into. But it’s important to note that not all steroids are used for the same purpose.
Many steroids are used as immunosuppressants to moderate symptoms of chronic conditions. These are typically corticosteroids (inhaled or oral) and cannot be used to enhance physical performance.
Steroids that affect physical, or athletic performance are anabolic — this is the kind strictly prohibited by most sporting organizations.
Here are 7 of the most popular adrenal medications at NorthWestPharmacy.com, but the list is by no means exhaustive. If you don’t see your medication on this list, check our Canada pharmacy online and international prescription listing on our main adrenal drugs page to see if we carry it and figure out how much you can save.
Calcort (Deflazacort)
Calcort (deflazacort) is an oral corticosteroid used to treat multiple health conditions that cause inflammation or require immunosuppression. Common use cases include rheumatoid arthritis, ulcerative colitis, connective tissue disease, and organ transplants.
Corticosteroids are synthetic substitutes for a hormone the body is supposed to produce on its own (cortisol). Imbalances in this hormone can cause a multitude of health conditions and adjusting the amount of cortisol in your body can affect how your body responds to illness or chronic condition flare-ups.
The point of corticosteroids is to suppress the immune response. When you’re experiencing a flare-up or trauma, your body secretes chemicals (such as prostaglandins or leukotrienes) that cause inflammation.
While some inflammation can actually be good, too much keeps the body from healing. Corticosteroids allow the immune response to slow down so there is less inflammation in the body.
Calcort also suppresses the immune system by decreasing the white blood cell count. Keeping white blood cells lower can prevent an attack on healthy tissue. This is critical in the cases of autoimmune disorders and organ transplants (this is how the body rejects the organ).
You may have trouble finding Calcort in the United States, but at NorthWestPharmacy.com, you can buy it at an affordable price. You can buy name-brand Calcort in two different dosage amounts: 6mg and 30mg. Prices start off at about $50.00 for a 2-month supply (60 pills, $0.83 per pill).
If you’d rather get the generic Calcort, we also sell deflazacort in four different dosage amounts: 1mg, 6mg, 12mg, and 30mg. Prices start at about $20.00 for a 2-month supply (60 pills, $0.33 per pill).
Cortef (Hydrocortisone)
Cortef (hydrocortisone) is a common oral corticosteroid prescribed to patients diagnosed with arthritis, some skin conditions, ulcerative colitis, certain cancers, Addison’s disease, and those suffering from severe allergies.
Given that Cortef is a corticosteroid, it works in the same way that Calcort does. Hydrocortisone isn’t considered a long-term solution, but it’s sometimes used in low doses to treat arthritis.
Cortef is specifically used to treat an autoimmune disorder called Addison’s disease, which causes the body to attack the adrenal glands. How Addison’s disease works is that it tells antibodies to attach to the adrenal cortex and destroy the cells that make cortisol and aldosterone.
Over time, the adrenal cortex gets completely destroyed and the glands are no longer able to produce the hormones they’re supposed to — hormones your body needs daily. This is where hydrocortisone steps in, replacing the hormones that your body can no longer produce on its own.
In the United States, a 30-pill supply of generic hydrocortisone starts at about $36.00 (about $1.20 per pill). Name-brand Cortef is about double that price for the same number of pills.
At NorthWestPharmacy.com, you can purchase brand-name Cortef starting at about $40.00 for a 100-pill supply ($0.40 per pill). That’s a savings of about 67% over the price you’re likely to pay in the U.S. You can also buy the generic version if you prefer.
Cortisone Acetate
Cortisone acetate is a synthetic form of cortisone, which is very similar to the hormone cortisol that the adrenal glands produce. Like other corticosteroids on this list, its purpose is to control the inflammatory response that naturally occurs in our bodies.
This particular drug is approved to treat many medical conditions but is most often used to treat rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis. Because arthritis is an inflammatory condition, cortisone acetate can help alleviate some of the associated symptoms.
At NorthWestPharmacy.com, you can purchase a 100-pill supply of generic cortisone acetate for about $71.00 (about $0.71 per pill).
FML Eye Drops (Fluorometholone)
FML Eye Drops (fluorometholone) are corticosteroids often prescribed as a short-term anti-inflammatory to allergies and eye injuries. FML Eye Drops are also often used as a post-operative treatment to keep inflammation at bay while the surgical site heals.
FML Eye Drops also contain a substance called polyvinyl alcohol, which is a lubricant. Polyvinyl alcohol will increase moisture in the eye to relieve irritation caused by a dry, inflamed eye.
While corticosteroids have varying degrees of risk in the long term, the potential negative effects of corticosteroids in the sensitive (and thin) tissues of the eye are clear.
Prolonged use of corticosteroids in the eye can lead to numerous adverse medical conditions, such as thinning of the cornea, optic nerve damage, infection, or cataracts.
Therefore, it’s generally recommended that people only use corticosteroids in their eyes for one or two weeks. If the reason for treatment has not been resolved after that time frame, a physician will likely try a different course of treatment.
At NorthWestPharmacy.com, you can buy a 10mL bottle of brand name FML Eye Drops for about $27.00 ($2.70 per mL). For a slightly better price, you could purchase the same size bottle of generic fluorometholone for $20.00 ($2.00 per mL).
In the United States, the cash price for a 10mL bottle of generic fluorometholone is about $250.00 ($25.00 per mL) — 12.5 times more than what people pay at NorthWestPharmacy.com. If you need to purchase the brand name, you’re looking at as much as $400.00 ($40.00 per mL) — nearly 15 times more than the NorthWestPharmacy.com price.
Florinef (Fludrocortisone)
Florinef (fludrocortisone) is a synthetic form of a specific corticosteroid class called a glucocorticoid. Specifically, this classification of corticosteroids binds to the glucocorticoid receptor.
Florinef is commonly prescribed for those diagnosed with Addison’s disease because their adrenal glands aren’t producing enough cortisol or aldosterone. It can also be used for people whose adrenal glands are slow-functioning (adrenal insufficiency). Hydrocortisone is typically prescribed alongside it.
Fludrocortisone can also be used to treat chronic postural hypotension, which is a type of low blood pressure. This specific type occurs when someone stands up or lays down.
In the U.S., you’re unlikely to find brand-name Florinef. However, you’ll easily find a 30-pill supply of the generic fludrocortisone for about $36.00 (about $1.20 per pill).
But at NorthWestPharmacy.com, you can save 58% on a per pill basis, even though we’re supplying brand name Florinef. Buy Florinef 100 count for only about $51.00 (about $0.51 per pill).
Medrol (Methylprednisolone)
Medrol (methylprednisolone) is a corticosteroid often prescribed to treat colitis, lupus, arthritis, allergic skin reactions, or gout. All of these conditions cause inflammation, which causes the adrenal glands to work harder producing chemicals to decrease the pain associated with inflammation (swelling, irritation, redness).
In many cases, a low dose of Medrol is preferred if the drug will be taken on a long-term basis as a maintenance medication.
In the U.S., a 30-pill supply of brand-name Medrol isn’t outrageously expensive — it can be about $33.00, or $1.10 per 4mg pill. However, at NorthWestPharmacy.com, you can purchase Medrol and save about 30%. A 100-pill supply of brand-name Medrol costs about $78.00, or $0.78 per 4mg pill.
The price of generic methylprednisolone in the U.S. is very similar to the brand-name version. But at NorthWestPharmacy.com you can save another 10% — a 100-pill supply of methylprednisolone costs about $68.00, or $0.68 per 4mg pill.
Depo-Medrol (Methylprednisolone)
Depo-Medrol (methylprednisolone) is essentially the same drug as Medrol (same active ingredient, of course), but it comes in liquid form so it can be injected. The injection is typically performed by a physician and can be placed into a muscle, a joint, or directly into a lesion or into the skin below the lesion.
Depo-Medrol is typically prescribed for patients suffering from ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, allergic reactions, skin/eyes/blood diseases, arthritis, and adrenal insufficiency.
In the U.S., a 10mL vial of 40mg/mL Depo-medrol is about $120.00 ($12.00 per mL).
At NorthWestPharmacy.com, you can buy Depo-Medrol in a 10mL vial of 40mg/mL for about $75.00 ($7.50 per mL) — a savings of about 38%. If you need a different dose (Depo-Medrol comes in 20mg/mL, 40mg/mL, and 80mg/mL) we supply those as well.
There is also a version of Depo-Medrol with Lidocaine that is often prescribed to patients with various forms of arthritis, tenosynovitis, and bursitis. These medications are not interchangeable, so be sure you’re ordering the correct medication at check-out.
Our pharmacists will check this for you prior to authorizing your shipment, but it may create delays with your order. To ensure the fastest delivery possible, double-check that the medication you’re ordering is the correct one.
HPA Axis Dysfunction
There’s a lot of debate about the medical diagnosis of HPA Axis Dysfunction (formerly known as adrenal fatigue). While the previous diagnosis focused only on the adrenal glands, HPA Axis Dysfunction considers the hypothalamus, pituitary glands, and adrenal glands. Ultimately, it is a matter of how these three glands work (or don’t work) together.
These three glands maintain critical functions in the body — in particular, the HPA axis regulates your body’s stress response. When you feel stress (whether physical, mental, or emotional), your body releases hormones, and during a stressful situation, the adrenal glands are releasing cortisol.
Cortisol is very important. It helps the body recover from physical trauma and fight off infections, in addition to helping maintain blood pressure and cardiovascular functions and regulate the nutrients we consume.
Aldosterone (also made by the adrenal glands) regulates salt, potassium, and water in the body, making sure there’s always a delicate balance.
When our adrenal glands are out of sorts — such as too much (or too little) production of cortisol and aldosterone — people may experience symptoms such as dizziness, fatigue, weakness, depression, and joint or muscle pain.
Some physicians would call this general fibromyalgia, but if the root cause is not addressed, it will never be truly solved.
If the root cause is HPA Axis Dysfunction, some medications (such as the corticosteroids on this list) may be effective at regulating and balancing the hormones in the body. As a result, symptoms should be alleviated.
Can’t Find Your Adrenal Medication?
Again, this list is not comprehensive, so if you can’t find your medication here, please visit our main adrenal health page. Alternatively, you can use the search bar at the top of our website to look for your medication.
If you would like some help, our knowledgeable customer service representatives are here for you every day of the week. They’ll be happy to help you find your medication, answer your questions, or even walk you through the ordering process.
Get in touch with us today at 1-866-539-5339 or visit our home page to learn more about how our safe online Canadian pharmacy and international drugstore site can help you. We look forward to helping you save money!
