Adrenal disease
Unraveling complex disorders with precision testing
Mayo Clinic Laboratories offers an array of testing designed to detect and characterize adrenal disorders. From screening for adrenal insufficiency to identifying adrenal tumors and evaluating hormonal imbalances, our menu is tailored to provide clinicians with the insights needed to diagnose and treat patients with these complex conditions.
Hereditary movement disorders Test menu
Adrenal insufficiency
Adrenal insufficiency occurs when the adrenal glands make too little cortisol and aldosterone. Our testing measures cortisol and adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) to help guide diagnosis.
Initial testing
- ACTH | Adrenocorticotropic Hormone, Plasma
- CORT | Cortisol, Serum
- CORTO | Cortisol, Free and Total, Serum
- DHES1 | Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate, Serum
Follow-up testing
- 21OH | 21-Hydroxylase Antibodies, Serum
- CINP | Cortisol, Mass Spectrometry, Serum
- POX | Fatty Acid Profile, Peroxisomal (C22-C26), Serum
- PRA | Renin Activity, Plasma
- SGSS | Synthetic Glucocorticoid Screen, Serum
- SGSU | Synthetic Glucocorticoid Screen, Random, Urine
Advantages
- Aids in identifying the cause of primary adrenal failure.
- Provides superior accuracy to clarify uncertain initial testing results through the use of mass spectrometry.
- Facilitates connection to Mayo Clinic endocrine experts for support interpreting a complex differential diagnosis.
Adrenal cortical carcinoma and adrenal incidentaloma
Adrenal tumors are found incidentally in about 5% of abdominal CT scans. Most of these tumors will turn out to be benign, but a small fraction will be adrenal cortical carcinoma (ACC), a type of cancer with high mortality and frequent recurrence. We offer testing to distinguish between benign or cancerous tumors, the various types of tumors, and tumor activity.
Initial testing
- CATU | Catecholamine Fractionation, Free, 24 Hour, Urine
- CORT | Cortisol, Serum
- METAF | Metanephrines, Fractionated, 24 Hour, Urine
- PMET | Metanephrines, Fractionated, Free, Plasma
Follow-up testing
- ALDS | Aldosterone, Serum
- DHES1 | Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate, Serum
- PRA | Renin Activity, Plasma
- OHPG | 17-Hydroxyprogesterone, Serum
Adrenal incidentaloma
Highlights
In this episode of “Answers From the Lab,” host Bobbi Pritt, M.D., chair of the Division of Clinical Microbiology at Mayo Clinic, is joined by Stefan Grebe, M.D., Ph.D., co-director of the Clinical Mass Spectrometry and Test Development Laboratory in the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, and Irina Bancos, M.D., consultant in the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism with a joint appointment in biochemistry and immunology. They discuss the diagnosis and management of adrenal gland tumors.
Irina Bancos, M.D. gives an overview of this test available through Mayo Clinic Laboratories. She discusses when this testing should be ordered, how this testing compares to other testing approaches, and what clinical action can be taken due to the results of this testing.
Understanding the difference between benign and malignant adrenal tumors has always been difficult, but the new Urinary Steroid Profile assay will assist with this medical challenge.
Congenital adrenal hyperplasia
Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) encompasses a group of genetic conditions that affect the adrenal glands and result in the inability to make certain hormones, including cortisol, aldosterone, and others. This condition manifests as classic CAH, which is usually found in testing at birth or early infancy, and nonclassic CAH, which may not be found until childhood or early adulthood. Our testing helps diagnose this condition to set patients of any age on the right treatment regimen and monitor treatment efficacy.
Second-tier newborn screening
Genetic testing
Initial testing
- ACTH | Adrenocorticotropic Hormone, Plasma
- CAH21 | Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia (CAH) Profile for 21-Hydroxylase Deficiency, Serum
- Profile includes three tests that are also available separately: Mayo IDs ANST, CINP, and OHPG.
Follow-up testing
- 17OHP | 17-Hydroxypregnenolone, Serum
- 17PRN | Pregnenolone and 17-Hydroxypregnenolone, Serum
- DCORT | 11-Deoxycortisol, Serum
- DHES1 | Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate, Serum
- DHEA | Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), Serum
- DOCS | 11-Deoxycorticosterone, Serum
- UE3 | Estriol, Unconjugated, Serum
- TTST | Testosterone, Total, Mass Spectrometry, Serum
Treatment monitoring
- ANST | Androstenedione, Serum
- OHPG | 17-Hydroxyprogesterone, Serum
- TTST | Testosterone, Total, Mass Spectrometry, Serum
Cushing syndrome
Cushing syndrome is a condition caused when the adrenal gland produces too much cortisol, and it can only be confirmed by laboratory testing. With symptoms similar to hypertension, obesity, and other common conditions, accurate diagnosis is critical to enable the correct treatment for patients.
Initial testing
- ACTH | Adrenocorticotropic Hormone, Plasma
- CORTU | Cortisol, Free, 24 Hour, Urine
- SALCT | Cortisol, Saliva
Follow-up testing
- CINP | Cortisol, Mass Spectrometry, Serum
- CORTO | Cortisol, Free and Total, Serum
- DEXA | Dexamethasone, Serum
- SGSS | Synthetic Glucocorticoid Screen, Serum
- SGSU | Synthetic Glucocorticoid Screen, Random, Urine
Highlights
Working together, Mayo Clinic laboratory medicine specialists and clinicians helped Elyn Simmons get her life back — and welcome two new lives to the world.