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Betamethasone

Corticosteroidprescriptionoral · inferred

Long-acting potent glucocorticoid with potency similar to dexamethasone (~25x hydrocortisone). Biologic half-life ~36-48 hours. Oral bioavailability excellent (~72%), Tmax 1-2 hours. CYP3A4 metabolized. Plasma half-life 5.5 hours but sustained effect due to genomic mechanisms. Used for inflammation, autoimmune conditions, adrenal insufficiency. Superior to dexamethasone in some applications due to longer persistence and greater tissue penetration.

Projected serum levels — 0.60 mg, once daily

Betamethasone
Betamethasone modeled serum levels, 0.60 mg once daily over 15 days Population-based pharmacokinetic estimate. Steady state reached after approximately 1 days. 0 0.25 0.50 0.75 1 Day 0 Day 4 Day 8 Day 11 Day 15 Time on a regular schedule ≈ steady state · day 1

Maintenance schedule: 0.60 mg once daily (oral).

Modeled steady state after ~1 days: peak ≈ 0.46 mg, trough ≈ 0.084 mg body load. Population-based estimate over 15 days for a 0.60 mg dose at a 70 kg reference body mass — the interactive app scales curves to your doses, timing, and body mass.

Key facts

Category
Corticosteroid
Route modeled
Oral
Model confidence
inferred
Half-life
11 h
Common dose
0.60 mg
Suggested maximum
7.2 mg/day
Reference dose range
0.30–7.2 mg (single dose)
Suggested cadence
once daily
Validated against
4 mg oral — Cmax 0.037 mg/L at 1.5 h

Documented interactions

  • contraindicated
    Carbamazepine (Tegretol) + Betamethasone CYP induction

    Carbamazepine (Tegretol) inducer of CYP3A4 predicted to change Betamethasone AUC by ~0.20x

  • contraindicated
    Clarithromycin (Biaxin) + Betamethasone CYP inhibition

    Clarithromycin (Biaxin) mechanism_based of CYP3A4 predicted to change Betamethasone AUC by ~10.00x

  • contraindicated
    Dasatinib (Sprycel) + Betamethasone CYP inhibition

    Dasatinib (Sprycel) time_dependent_inhibitor of CYP3A4 predicted to change Betamethasone AUC by ~5.00x

  • contraindicated
    Diltiazem + Betamethasone CYP inhibition

    Diltiazem mechanism_based of CYP3A4 predicted to change Betamethasone AUC by ~10.00x

  • contraindicated
    Efavirenz (Sustiva) + Betamethasone CYP induction

    Efavirenz (Sustiva) inducer of CYP3A4 predicted to change Betamethasone AUC by ~0.12x

  • contraindicated
    Grapefruit (whole fruit) + Betamethasone CYP inhibition

    Grapefruit (whole fruit) mechanism_based of CYP3A4 predicted to change Betamethasone AUC by ~10.00x

Serum checks 295 modeled interaction pairings for betamethasone across your whole stack — absorption conflicts, enzyme inhibition, and nutrient depletion included.

Research behind this entry

  1. Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics of Intramuscular and Oral Betamethasone and Dexamethasone in Reproductive Age Women in India Jobe H et al. · Clinical and Translational Science, 2020 DOI

    Comparative study showing betamethasone terminal half-life 11 hours (twice dexamethasone 5.5h), slower clearance, larger volume of distribution, longer persistence with sustained PD effects.

  2. Pharmacokinetics of betamethasone after single-dose intramuscular administration of betamethasone phosphate and betamethasone acetate to healthy subjects Momin S et al. · European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, 2012 DOI

    IM study of phosphate/acetate mixture showing biphasic release; phosphate provides rapid absorption while acetate depot extends half-life to 14+ days post-injection.

  3. Population pharmacokinetic modeling of intramuscular and oral dexamethasone and betamethasone in Indian women Jobe H et al. · Journal of Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics, 2020 DOI

    Population PK model demonstrating betamethasone slower clearance, larger Vd, longer persistence than dexamethasone; oral bioavailability ~72%, supporting advantages for chronic anti-inflammatory therapy.

3 published studies referenced in the app, each with a plain-language summary.