BACKGROUND Cushing's disease is very rare in the paediatric population. Although uncommon, corticotroph hyperplasia causing Cushing's syndrome has been described in the adult population, but appears to be extremely rare in children. Likewise, cyclical cortisol hypersecretion, while accounting for 15 % of adult cases of Cushing's disease, has only rarely been described in the paediatric populati...

BACKGROUND To evaluate the construct and criterion validity of the Tuebingen Cushing's disease quality of life inventory (Tuebingen CD-25) for application in patients treated for Cushing's disease (CD). METHODS A total of 176 patients with adrenocorticotropin hormone-dependent CD (144 of them female, overall mean age 46.1 ± 13.7 years) treated at 3 large tertiary referral centers in Germany w...

BACKGROUND Adrenal Cushing's syndrome caused by ACTH-independent macronodular adrenocortical hyperplasia (AIMAH) can be accompanied by aberrant responses to hormonal stimuli. We investigated the prevalence of adrenocortical reactions to these stimuli in a large cohort of AIMAH patients, both in vivo and in vitro. METHODS In vivo cortisol responses to hormonal stimuli were studied in 35 patien...

Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH), the principal regulator of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, has been identified in various organ systems, including the immune and the female and male reproductive systems. CRH-like immunoreactivity has been reported in peripheral inflammatory sites and in a number of reproductive organs, including the ovaries, endometrial glands, decidualized endo...

OBJECTIVE We describe a patient with an ACTH-producing phaeochromocytoma who initially presented with hypercortisolism and normal catecholamine concentrations, followed by near-normalisation of ACTH secretion and massive catecholamine secretion. In vitro studies were carried out on the tumour to evaluate the interaction between the tumour cells and normal adrenal cortex. METHODS AND RESULTS A...

The hypercortisolism of melancholic depression is thought to reflect hypothalamic hypersecretion of CRH and may be related to the hyperarousal associated with this syndrome. Although chronic administration of imipramine to experimental animals significantly decreases CRH messenger RNA levels in the paraventricular nucleus, it is generally thought that resolution of hypercortisolism following re...

Adrenal cortex tumors are divided into benign forms, such as primary hyperplasias and adrenocortical adenomas (ACAs), and malignant forms or adrenocortical carcinomas (ACCs). Primary hyperplasias are rare causes of adrenocorticotropin hormone-independent hypercortisolism. ACAs are the most common type of adrenal gland tumors and they are rarely "functional," i.e., producing steroids. When funct...

Bronchopulmonary carcinoids are rare pulmonary neoplasms although they account for most cases of ectopic ACTH syndromes. When feasible, the mainstay treatment is surgical resection of the tumor. We report the case of a 52-year-old woman with signs and symptoms suggestive of hypercortisolism for 12 months, admitted to our department because of community acquired pneumonia. Blood hormone analysis...