Claim: "When your
adrenal glands are overtaxed, a condition known as
adrenal fatigue or
adrenal exhaustion sets in, which in turn can set a cascade of disease processes into motion," claims Joseph Mercola on his website, mercola.com.
Transient
adrenal insufficiency has been described as a manifestation of viral, parasitic, or mycotic infection, in particular in premature newborn infants or immunocompromised patients.
This report was intended to remind other physicians to watch out for
adrenal issues even when the thyroid might initially seem to be the problem.
For instance, a short height of a child that is potentially related to hypercorticism needs supplementary investigations including a pituitary scan and finding an ACTH (Adrenocoticotropic Hormone) secreting tumour is not an incidentaloma.15 As age distribution pattern,
adrenal and pituitary sites seem more frequent in elderly than in youth.9,16 Most frequent
adrenals are involved in the sixth and seventh decades.9,16 A particular attention is needed to an
adrenal mass in children and adolescence due to high malignancy risk.9,16 General approach of incidentalomas's management involves a multidisciplinary team.
Case records of patients who had undergone surgery for
adrenal lesions at Department of Urology, SCB Medical College Hospital from January 2009 to April 2017 were reviewed retrospectively.
Initial plain radiograph of the abdomen for catheter placement demonstrated dense calcifications in the region of the
adrenal glands (Figure 1).
A computed tomography scan of the thorax abdomen and pelvis was performed, and it showed bilateral homogenous
adrenal masses measuring 3.7 x 5.4 x 6.4 cm on the left and 5.5 x 2.7 x 5.9 cm on the right (Figures 1 and 2).
Here, we report a patient who was admitted with bilateral
adrenal masses and diagnosed as
adrenal sarcomatoid carcinoma.
By light microscopy, the left and right
adrenals were divided in both males and females into two portions: cortex and medulla.
Studies investigating the association between diabetes and
adrenal gland morphology have revealed that
adrenal volume is increased in patients with diabetes [3, 5].
The
adrenal cortex is composed of a well-organized structure and functions in corticosteroid production.
An imbalance of any of these hormones can lead to serious conditions, but there's no evidence that an imbalance is caused by "stress" or "exhaustion" to the
adrenal glands.