Utility of 30 and 60 minute cortisol samples after high-dose synthetic ACTH1–24 injection in the diagnosis of adrenal insufficiency
- Resource Type
- article
- Authors
- Thomas Zueger; Marlen Jordi; Markus Laimer; Christoph Stettler
- Source
- Swiss Medical Weekly, Vol 144, Iss 2930 (2014)
- Subject
- ACTH stimulation test
stimulated serum cortisol
adrenal insufficiency
Medicine
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 1424-3997
BACKGROUND: In clinical practise the high dose ACTH stimulation test (HDT) is frequently used in the assessment of adrenal insufficiency (AI). However, there is uncertainty regarding optimal time-points and number of blood samplings. The present study compared the utility of a single cortisol value taken either 30 or 60 minutes after ACTH stimulation with the traditional interpretation of the HDT. METHODS: Retrospective analysis of 73 HDT performed at a single tertiary endocrine centre. Serum cortisol was measured at baseline, 30 and 60 minutes after intravenous administration of 250 µg synthetic ACTH1–24. Adrenal insufficiency (AI) was defined as a stimulated cortisol level