How and when to take betamethasone tablets

It's important to take betamethasone tablets as your doctor tells you. Always follow the instructions from a pharmacist or doctor, or the leaflet in the medicine packet.

Dosage and strength

Betamethasone tablets contain 500 micrograms of betamethasone.

Your dose depends on why you're taking it and how quickly your condition improves. Your doctor will tell you how many tablets to take.

The usual dose is from 1 to 10 tablets a day (500 micrograms to 5,000 micrograms, also known as 0.5mg to 5mg).

Changes to your dose

Your doctor may ask you to have regular reviews to make sure that the medicine is working and the dose is right for you. They may suggest changes to your dose.

Once your condition starts to get better, it's likely that your dose will go down.

Your doctor will probably ask you to reduce your dose slowly when it's time to stop your treatment completely. This is to reduce the risk of withdrawal symptoms.

How to take it

Unless your doctor or pharmacist gives you different instructions, it's best to take your tablets as a single dose once a day, straight after breakfast. Taking your dose in the morning after food will help to reduce the chance of side effects.

Betamethasone tablets dissolve in water. You can take the tablets as a drink by putting your tablets in a glass of water and letting them dissolve. Make sure you finish the drink to get all of your dose.

You do not have to put your tablets in water. You can swallow them whole with a drink of water if you prefer.

If you need to take half a tablet then you can break a tablet in half, using the score line.

How long to take it for

How long you take betamethasone for depends on why you're taking it.

You may only need a short course for up to a week.

For some conditions you may need to take it for longer, even for many years or the rest of your life.

Your doctor will tell you how long to take it for.

If you forget to take it

If you miss a dose of betamethasone tablets, take it as soon as you remember. If you do not remember until the next day, skip the missed dose and take the next dose at the usual time.

Do not take 2 doses to make up for a forgotten one.

If you often forget doses, it may help to set an alarm to remind you. You could also ask your pharmacist for advice on other ways to help you remember to take your medicine.

If you take too much

Taking more than your prescribed dose of betamethasone tablets is unlikely to harm you.

If you're worried, talk to your doctor or pharmacist.

Stopping betamethasone

It can be dangerous to stop taking betamethasone tablets suddenly, especially if you've been on a high dose for a long time.

Your symptoms could get worse again. You may also get withdrawal side effects including:

• severe tiredness
• weakness
• body aches
• joint pain

These side effects are most likely if you've taken betamethasone tablets for more than a few weeks or you've been taking more than 2 tablets a day.

Your doctor will probably want to reduce your dose gradually over several weeks to prevent these side effects.