The importance to clinical medicine and surgery of the metabolism of the hormone of the adrenal cortex is becoming increasingly more evident from the recent work of many investigators. It has long been known that in the human, destructive lesions of the adrenal cortex are responsible for the fatal disease described by Addison in 1855 and which bears his name. In Addison's disease, the symptoms and signs are pigmentation of skin and mucous membrane, gastro-intestinal disturbances, asthenia, low blood pressure, dehydration and hamoconcentration (increased sodium excretion, low blood sodium), high blood potassium and hypoglycemia in the terminal stages. [...] Adrenal cortical extracts or synthetic cortical substances administered to patients with Addison's disease will restore them to health and prolong life. Adrenalectomized animals can be maintained in good health indefinitely on cortical substances. Hyperfunction of the adrenal cortex occurs in cases of adrenal cortical hyperplasia, adrenal cortical tumors, and in Cushing's Syndrome. The clinical features of Cushing's syndrome are hypertension, localized obesity, osteoporosis, hyperglycemia, polycythemia and skin changes. The clinical features of the adrenogenital syndrome are sex-reversal or precocious maturity. While the features mentioned are the main characteristics of the respective syndromes, there are cases which show manifestations of both types of condition. [...]

Browne, J. (Supervisor)