This site is intended for healthcare professionals

account_circleSign in
Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

Aetiology

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

Causes of acute hypoadrenalism include:

  • drug related:
    • abrupt withdrawal of steroids from patients with adrenal atrophy secondary to chronic steroid administration
    • steroid synthesis inhibiting drugs given to patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia
    • steroid metabolism increasing drugs given to patients with decreased adrenocortical reserve
  • adrenal crisis - rapid and overwhelming intensification of chronic adrenal insufficiency - may follow trauma, severe hypotension and sepsis
  • an acute haemorrhagic destruction of both adrenal glands:
    • newborn - birth trauma
    • children - usually associated with septicaemia with Pseudomonas or with meningococcaemia (Waterhouse - Friederichsen syndrome)
    • adults - anticoagulant therapy or a coagulation disorder during stress
    • pregnancy - idiopathic adrenal vein thrombosis; complication of venography
  • surgical adrenalectomy e.g. for breast cancer
  • pituitary necrosis e.g. Sheehan's syndrome
  • inadequate steroid replacement during surgery

Related pages

Create an account to add page annotations

Create a free account

Add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation, such as a web address or phone number. This information will always be displayed when you visit this page