cortisone

[kawr-tuh-zohn, -sohn]

noun

Biochemistry. a steroid hormone of the adrenal cortex, C21H28O5, active in carbohydrate and protein metabolism.
Pharmacology. a commercial form of this compound, obtained by extraction from the adrenal glands of certain domesticated animals or produced synthetically, used chiefly in the treatment of arthritis, rheumatic fever, certain allergies, and other systemic conditions.

Origin of cortisone

1949; shortening of cortico-sterone; see sterol, -one

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for cortisone

Contemporary Examples of cortisone

A doctor comes to his house and gives him shots of cortisone to calm the arthritic pain in his knees.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days
David Freeman
December 13, 2014
Before that final game, the Birds suggested that Palmer take a cortisone shot in his shoulder, which, that week, had become sore.
Will the Real Jim Palmer Please Stand Up
Tom Boswell
September 27, 2014
With Dan and the other crewmembers back, did you feel the show got the cortisone shot it needed to run smoothly again?
Alison Brie on ‘Community’s’ New Beginning, Dan Harmon’s Return, Nicolas Cage, and More
Marlow Stern
January 3, 2014
“Lance responded that he had taken EPO, testosterone, growth hormone, cortisone, and steroids,” she says.
Why Victoria Gotti Is Rooting for Banned Cyclist Lance Armstrong
Michael Daly
October 23, 2012
This group includes familiar medicines like hydrocortisone, cortisone, prednisone, and Decadron.
Where Were the Doctors to Testify at Roger Clemens’s Perjury Trial?
Kent Sepkowitz
June 20, 2012

Historical Examples of cortisone

Anything else I said would be hearsay, and I understand that he did receive some cortisone.
Warren Commission (6 of 26): Hearings Vol. VI (of 15)
The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy

British Dictionary definitions for cortisone

cortisone

noun

a glucocorticoid hormone, the synthetic form of which has been used in treating rheumatoid arthritis, allergic and skin diseases, leukaemia, etc; 17-hydroxy-11-dehydrocorticosterone. Formula: C 21 H 28 O 5

Word Origin for cortisone

C20: shortened from corticosterone

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for cortisone

1949, coined by its discoverer, Dr. Edward C. Kendall, shortening of chemical name, 17-hydroxy-11 dehydrocorticosterone, ultimately from Latin corticis (genitive of cortex; see cortex). So called because it was obtained from the "cortex" of adrenal glands; originally called Compound E (1936).

cortisone in Medicine

cortisone

[kôr′tĭ-sōn′, -zōn′]

A naturally occurring corticosteroid that functions primarily in carbohydrate metabolism and is used in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, adrenal insufficiency, certain allergies, and gout.

cortisone in Science

cortisone

[kôr′tĭ-sōn′]

A steroid hormone that is easily formed from or converted to cortisol in the blood and is also produced synthetically for use as a pharmaceutical. The effects of cortisone on body tissues are similar to those of naturally or synthetically produced cortisol.

cortisone in Culture

cortisone

[(kawr-ti-zohn)]

A hormone secreted by the adrenal glands that is important in the metabolism of fats and carbohydrates. It is used in medicine to treat some forms of arthritis and to reduce inflammation.