Corticosteroid drug.

Corticosteroid drug (kôr″təkōstâr′oid), any one of several synthetic or naturally occurring substances with the general chemical structure of steroids. They are used therapeutically to mimic or augment the effects of the naturally occurring corticosteroids, which are produced in the cortex of the adrenal gland. Corticosteroids are very powerful drugs that affect the entire body; even corticosteroids used on large areas of skin for long periods are absorbed in sufficient quantity to cause systemic effects. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]