Prednisone and mania

I was on prednisone for 4 months as part of my chemo regiment.
It has made me irritable, angry, anxious and mean. At times things come out of my
mouth that I can't remember later.
I'm trying to explain to my friends that this is not me but the steroid.
Can anyone corroborate this for me?

[Abhijeet Deshmukh, MD]

Hello.

Your symptoms do suggest a possible effect of the steroid medication. Prednisone and other steroidal drugs are known to have psychological side effects such as mood changes, irritability, psychosis, etc. Please refer to the links I have added below.

I suggest you consult with your treating doctor about this and get it sorted out. If you are still taking the prescribed dose of Prednisone, you might have to discuss alternatives with your doctor. I also suggest you take an opinion of a mental health professional in your area, to make sure this is not due to a co-existing psychological disorder.

Articles to refer (roughly in the order of their hierarchy of evidence) -

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15819475

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9853693

http://www.mayoclinicproceedings.com/content/81/10/1361.long

There is a good list of references at the end of the third article. Hope this helps.