In general, glucocorticoid dosage depends on the severity of the condition and the response of the patient. If no favourable response is noted within a couple of days, continuation of glucocorticoid therapy is undesirable. In chronic conditions requiring long-term therapy the lowest dosage that provides adequate, but not necessarily complete, relief should be used.

For tablet:

• In adult patients, daily oral dosages vary from 1 mg to 10 mg and in children from 0.03-0.20 mg/kg body weight,according to the individual response.
• In some patients higher dosages may be temporarily required,to control the disease. As soon as circumstances permit,dosage should be decreased.
• For a short dexamethasone suppression test 1 mg dexamethasone is given at 11 p.m. and plasmacortisol measured the next morning.
• Patients who do not show a decrease in cortisol can be exposed to a longer test: 0.5 mg dexamethasone is given at 6-hour intervals
• for 48 hours followed by 2 mg every 6 hours for a further 48 hours. 24-hour urine collections are made before, during and at the end of the test for the determination of 17 alpha-hydroxycorticoids.

For injection:

• Dexamethasone can be given by intravenous (IV), intramuscular (IM) or local injection. Dexamethasone injections can also be diluted with an infusion fluid or be injected directly into the infusion line.
• Intravenous injections of massive doses should be given slowly, over a period of several minutes.
• Intramuscular administration should be given by deep intramuscular injection,to prevent atrophy of the subcutaneous adipose tissues.
• Intra-articular injections should be given under strictly aseptic conditions as glucocorticoids decrease the resistance to infection. When diluted with these infusion fluids, Dexamethasone will keep its potency for at least 24 hours (at room temperature and in daylight conditions). As infusion fluids, Sodium chloride 0.9%, Anhydrous glucose 5%, Invert sugar 10%, Sorbitol 5%, Ringer’s solution, Hartman’s solution (Ringer-lactate) etc.can be used.
• The dosage of Dexamethasone depends on the severity of the condition and the response of the patient.
• For systemic therapy in adults, daily doses of 0.05-0.20 mg/kg body weight are usually sufficient. For emergencies (e.g. anaphylaxis, acute severe asthma, cerebral edema) substantially higher doses are required. An initial dose of 10-20 mg IV is followed by 6 mg IV or IM every 6 hours,until a satisfactory result has been obtained. Thereafter the dosage has to be tapered off gradually.

For local therapy, the following doses are recommended:

• Intra-articularly: 2-4 mg in large and 0.8-1 mg in small joints
• Intrabursally: 2-4 mg;in tendon sheaths:0.4-1 mg
• The frequency of these injections may vary from every 3-5 days to every 2-3 weeks