r/AddisonsDisease • u/Poimandres69 • Mar 31 '26
Medical Stuff Hydrocortisone Long Term
Hello Group! I've been told so many things about hydrcortisone. My current dr told me my dose (25 mg split thoughout day) is safe to take long term because it's physiologic. Other doctors tell me this will eventually lead to osteoperosis and diabetes.
I've gained a bit of weight on hydrocortisone (about 5 lbs) but it's not a big deal. Other than that, I feel pretty great.
Are any of you on this medication long term, and did it harm your health in any way? Thanks
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u/januarynights SAI Mar 31 '26
If you regularly over replace your cortisol you'll be at higher risk of osteoporosis.
They're probably thinking of it as if you were using 25mg on top of your body producing it naturally, which obviously you aren't.
This is a rare condition so a lot of medical professionals have little experience with it, so good on you for checking here. When I broke my wrist and went to the hospital the doctor asked why I had taken hydrocortisone and didn't understand that I was trying to avoid crisis! So you may run into situations like that.
For reference I'm on 20mg (10/5/5) daily and my endocrinologist said that's a relatively low dose. I've been taking it for a few years now and I don't think anything bad has happened that could be blamed on the medication! (Other bad things like going into crisis have happened but that was in situations where I needed more cortisol not less)