Morning Cortisol Rules Out Adrenal Insufficiency

Posted on April 7, 2016 by MaryO

endo2016

 

Key clinical point: Skip ACTH stimulation if morning serum cortisol is above 11.1 mcg/dL.

Major finding: A morning serum cortisol above 11.1 mcg/dL is a test of adrenal function with 99% sensitivity.

Data source: Review of 3,300 adrenal insufficiency work-ups.

Disclosures: There was no outside funding for the work, and the investigators had no disclosures.

BOSTON – A random morning serum cortisol above 11.1 mcg/dL safely rules out adrenal insufficiency in both inpatients and outpatients, according to a review of 3,300 adrenal insufficiency work-ups at the Edinburgh Centre for Endocrinology and Diabetes.

The finding could help eliminate the cost and hassle of unnecessary adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) stimulation tests; the investigators estimated that the cut point would eliminate almost half of them without any ill effects. “You can be very confident that patients aren’t insufficient if they are above that line,” with more than 99% sensitivity. If they are below it, “they may be normal, and they may be abnormal.” Below 1.8 mcg/dL, adrenal insufficiency is almost certain, but between the cutoffs, ACTH stimulation is necessary, said lead investigator Dr. Scott Mackenzie, a trainee at the center.

In short, “basal serum cortisol as a screening test … offers a convenient and accessible means of identifying patients who require further assessment,” he said at the annual meeting of the Endocrine Society.

Similar cut points have been suggested by previous studies, but the Scottish investigation is the first to validate its findings both inside and outside of the hospital.

The team arrived at the 11.1 mcg/dL morning cortisol cut point by comparing basal cortisol levels and synacthen results in 1,628 outpatients. They predefined a sensitivity of more than 99% for adrenal sufficiency to avoid missing anyone with true disease. The cut point’s predictive power was then validated in 875 outpatients and 797 inpatients. Morning basal cortisol levels proved superior to afternoon levels.

The investigators were thinking about cost-effectiveness, but they also wanted to increase screening. “We may be able to reduce the number of adrenal insufficiency cases we are missing because [primary care is] reluctant to send people to the clinic for synacthen tests” due to the cost and inconvenience. As with many locations in the United States, “our practice is to do [ACTH on] everyone.” If there was “a quick and easy 9 a.m. blood test” instead, it would help, Dr. Mackenzie said.

Adrenal insufficiency was on the differential for a wide variety of reasons, including hypogonadism, pituitary issues, prolactinemia, fatigue, hypoglycemia, postural hypotension, and hyponatremia. Most of the patients were middle aged, and they were about evenly split between men and women.

There was no outside funding for the work, and the investigators had no disclosures.

aotto@frontlinemedcom.com

From http://www.clinicalendocrinologynews.com/specialty-focus/pituitary-thyroid-adrenal-disorders/single-article-page/morning-cortisol-rules-out-adrenal-insufficiency/af59bab2bb014ca9d352c792f9d41653.html

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Action For Adrenal Disease

Posted on April 3, 2016 by MaryO
Watch online Saturday April 16 at 1:00 PM eastern at https://plus.google.com/events/cpjbd8celcbfgngp8und662s198?hl=en
Secondary Adrenal Insufficiency and Addison’s Disease can be deadly, mostly because of the lack of education and awareness. We have lost too many and need to be proactive in preventing unnecessary deaths! Join us as we educate on what these diseases are, how easily they can become deadly and preventive measures we can all take to help this community. Brought to you by the National Adrenal Disease Foundation, with speakers who have personal experience with these diseases.

Our program will include:

Senior Administrator Nichole Klute Rushton••• of the Addison’s Disease Support Group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/addisons.support/) on Facebook, will speak in detail about the unfortunate adrenal insufficient patients who have tragically passed, reminding us that the danger of loss of life is a reality for every person with adrenal insufficiency who doesn’t receive the vital hormones they need

Administrator Debby Hunter ••• of the Living With Addison’s Disease Support on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/LivingWithAddisonsDisease/) who will give us tips on how we can approach our local emergency facilities and hospitals with information about adrenal insufficiency and its care in a crisis situation. She will also share her own personal experience with going through an adrenal crisis.

Deputy Sheriff Chris Spires••• who will speak on life as the husband of an Addison’s disease patient, and share with us how the law enforcement community views adrenal insufficient patients

Melanie Wong ••• National Adrenal Disease Foundation (http://www.NADF.us) Executive Director, who will speak about the recent tragic losses, and the vital importance of reminding the medical community about adrenal insufficiency, as well as NADF’s latest project to get NADF Adrenal Crisis Care posters displayed in every emergency room facility in the United States.

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Adrenal Insufficiency Patients Require More Education on Adrenal Crisis

Posted on April 3, 2016 by MaryO

adrenalcrisispathway

Greater efforts to educate patients with adrenal insufficiency and their families about prevention of adrenal crisis may be necessary, according to data presented at the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) 24th Annual Scientific & Clinical Congress.

Additionally, the researchers, who looked at patients treated for adrenal insufficiency, found that many are not being adequately trained or equipped to deal with an adrenal crisis.

“These patients can crash and we are not doing enough to help prevent problems,” study investigator Nitika Malhotra, MD, endocrinologist in Lansing, Michigan, said. “We did this study because we think this is a big problem.”

Malhotra, who presented the study findings at the meeting, explained that patients with adrenal insufficiency are at risk for developing adrenal crisis, and it is now estimated that 8% of patients with adrenal insufficiency are hospitalized for adrenal crisis each year.

The problem, according to Malhotra, is that far too many patients are failing to receive crises prevention education. Moreover, they are not receiving emergency glucocorticoid kits.

“All of the families need to be taught and that is not happening,” Malhotra said in an interview with Endocrinology Advisor. “It will reduce the morbidity and mortality and the hospitalization, and it may improve the quality of life of patients too.”

For their study, Malhotra and her colleagues collected data from patients with adrenal insufficiency who were seen at a single institution between March 2009 and March 2014.

The investigators conducted a retrospective chart review and examined age, gender, causes of adrenal insufficiency, glucocorticoid dose, and monitoring for hyponatremia and hyperkalemia. They also looked at postural blood pressure, crises prevention education for glucocorticoid dose adjustments during stress, and whether patients had a Medic Alert ID or a parenteral glucocorticoid kit.

The researchers identified 85 patients (29 males and 56 females) with adrenal insufficiency. Of these patients, 33 patients had primary adrenal insufficiency (38.8%) and 52 had secondary adrenal insufficiency (61.2%). The mean age of the patients was 55.8 years.

Among the 85 patients, 23 (27%) had postural blood pressures checked — five of whom were positive (21.7%). Seventy-seven patients (90.6%) were monitored for electrolytes, and 41 patients (48.2%) were on steroid doses above 20 mg per day.

However, the researchers found that only 57 patients (67.1%) had received steroid dose adjustment instructions. In addition, only 29 patients (34.1%) had a Medic Alert ID, and only 17 patients (20%) were setup with emergency parenteral glucocorticoid kits.

Even though this study has many inherent limitations, Malhotra said, it appears that the preventive strategies for adrenal crisis in patients with adrenal insufficiency are not being consistently followed.

Patient education is paramount for achieving a successful prevention strategy for adrenal crisis, and endocrinologists have a responsibility to make sure that all patients with adrenal insufficiency have a Medic Alert ID and access to emergency glucocorticoid kits, according to Malhotra.

Furthermore, she said families should receive adequate education about parenteral steroid administration and steroid dose adjustments in stressful situations.

At her institution, Malhotra said, endocrinologists are introducing an automated electronic alert in their electronic medical records to determine if this electronic prompt will improve adherence.

Reference

  1. Malhotra N et al. Abstract #102. Presented at: American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) 24th Annual Scientific & Clinical Congress; May 13-17, 2015; Nashville, Tenn.

 

From http://www.endocrinologyadvisor.com/aace-2015/adrenal-crisis-in-adrenal-insufficiency/article/415123/

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Addison’s disease may cause psychosis, say researchers

Posted on December 10, 2015 by MaryO

adrenal-glands

 

Research suggests that chronic adrenal insufficiency, more commonly known as Addison’s disease, may be responsible for psychiatric symptoms in those who suffer with it. Unfortunately, these symptoms are poorly understood and inadequately studied. In one case, a 41-year-old construction worker was admitted to a psychiatric clinic complaining of depression. He had trouble sleeping and concentrating and had lost 6 pounds due to a loss of appetite. He was placed on 20mg of fluoxetine but returned 2 weeks later complaining that the therapy did not work, and even reported hallucinating his ex-wife, who had recently died in a car accident. He returned again later 4 months later and was found to have a weak pulse, major hypotension, and hyponatremia and hyperkalemia. It was at this point that he was diagnosed with Addison’s disease.

The disease was first described by Thomas Addison in the mddle of the 19th century. It involves inadequate secretion from the adrenal glands, leading to lower secretion of glucocorticoids. Its usual symptom pigmentation involves fatigue, weight loss, nausea, vomiting, weakness and abdominal pain. Among its psychiatric symptoms are psychosis and delirium.

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Unilateral andrenalectomy may be valid first-line treatment for Cushing’s syndrome

Posted on November 1, 2015 by MaryO

Debillon E, et al. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2015;doi:10.1210/jc.2015-2662.

In patients with evident Cushing’s syndrome related to primary bilateral macronodular adrenal hyperplasia, unilateral adrenalectomy of the large gland appears to be a suitable alternative to bilateral adrenalectomy as a first-line treatment, according to recent findings.

Unilateral adrenalectomy yielded normalized urinary free cortisol and improved Cushing’s syndrome, according to the researchers.

Olivier Chabre , MD, PhD, of the Service d’Endocrinologie-Diabétologie-Nutrition in France, and colleagues evaluated all patients (n = 15) with overt Cushing’s syndrome related to primary bilateral macronodular adrenal hyperplasia who underwent unilateral laparoscopic adrenalectomy of the larger gland between 2001 and 2015. Patients were seen for clinical and biological follow-up assessments at 1, 3 and 6 months postoperatively, 5 years after surgery and at the time of the last available urinary free cortisol measurement.

The study’s primary outcome measures were pre- and postoperative levels of urinary free cortisol, plasma cortisol, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), BMI, blood pressure, plasma glucose and lipids and measurements of these values on follow-up assessments. Patients were followed for a median of 60 months.

The researchers found that in early postoperative measurements, all 15 patients who underwent unilateral adrenalectomy achieved normal or low urinary free cortisol. Between 7 days and 1 month, there was a decrease in median urinary free cortisol from 2.19 times the upper limit of normal (ULN) at baseline to 0.27 ULN (P = .001). At 1 month, only one patient had elevated urinary free cortisol, and this patient went into remission by month 3 and continued to be in remission after 12 years of follow-up.

Forty percent of the patients developed adrenal insufficiency after unilateral adrenalectomy and latent adrenal insufficiency could not be excluded in two of the other patients. No predictors of postoperative adrenal insufficiency were identified.

Six of the patients had diabetes before unilateral adrenalectomy surgery; four of those were treated with antidiabetes drugs. At 12 months, only two of these patients had a continued need for antidiabetes drugs and had reductions in HbA1c despite decreases in their treatment. Recurrence occurred in two patients, demonstrating urinary free cortisol above the ULN at 7 years postoperatively and 8 years postoperatively. Both cases required treatment with mitotane, and in one of the patients, adrenalectomy of the second gland was required 9 years after the initial adrenalectomy.

According to the researchers, postoperative management and vigilant follow-up is needed in order to monitor patients for the risk for adrenal insufficiency.

“Further prospective studies are needed to better evaluate the long-term benefits of [unilateral adrenalectomy], which has one major benefit over [bilateral adrenalectomy]: if needed, [unilateral adrenalectomy] can be transformed in [bilateral adrenalectomy], while the opposite is obviously not true,” the researchers wrote. “One could propose that in further prospective studies [bilateral adrenalectomy] could be performed only if [unilateral adrenalectomy] fails to normalize [urinary free cortisol] at 1 month postoperatively.” – by Jennifer Byrne

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.

From Healio

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