Active clinical trials for "Adrenocortical Hyperfunction"

This research uses the Liquid Chromatography coupled to tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS / MS) technique on dried blot spot samples for the neonatal screening of congenital adrenal hyperplasia. The main objective of this study is to demonstrate that this technique allow dosage of adrenal steroids on dried blot spot samples as efficiently and with the same sensitivity than the current technic on a cohort of 132 newborns aged 2 to 5 days, with a gestational age greater than or equal to 30 weeks of amenorrhea.

Congenital adrenal hyperplasia, an autosomal recessive condition, is mainly caused by mutations in the gene 21-hydroxylase and is treated with glucocorticoids in a slightly supraphysiological dose. Adult patients seem to be characterized by insulin resistance, which may be caused by the glucocorticoids and/or the accompanying obesity. The hypothesis of this study is that pioglitazone can improve insulin sensitivity and correlated cardiovascular risk factors in this specific group of patients. This will be tested in a randomized, placebo-controlled, cross-over trial; insulin sensitivity will be quantified by euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp studies.

This study will examine and compare the effects of intense exercise on the release of catecholamines in patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) and in healthy persons. Catecholamines are hormones (adrenaline and noradrenaline) that are produced by the adrenal glands and released into the blood stream during stress, such as trauma, illness, intense exercise, or low blood sugar. The study will also assess exercise tolerance in patients with CAH, compared with healthy persons. Patients with CAH between the ages of 10 and 40 years who are managing well on standard treatment (glucocorticoids, mineralocorticoids) may be eligible for this study. Healthy volunteers that match the enrolled patients in age, sex, race and body fat will be recruited as control subjects. All candidates will be screened with a medical history, physical examination and electrocardiogram (EKG). Body fat will be measured using an instrument called a Bod Pod. The body fat measurement has two parts: first, the subject sits quietly in a large egg-shaped capsule for about 2 to 3 minutes; then the subject breathes into a plastic tube for one minute, followed by three quick panting breaths. Women will have a urine pregnancy test; pregnant women cannot participate in the study. Participants will undergo three exercise sessions on separate consecutive mornings after fasting overnight. Before each test, patients (not healthy volunteers) will take either an additional morning dose of hydrocortisone or a placebo (a lookalike pill with no active ingredient). Before each test a thin catheter (plastic tube) will be placed into an arm vein through a needle. A numbing cream can be applied to make the needle stick hurt less. Blood will be drawn through this intravenous (IV) line before, during and after the exercise tests. The first test is a maximal exercise test to determine the individual's maximum exercise fitness capacity. The second two and third tests are a standardized exercise tests. Before the two standardized tests, patients (not healthy volunteers) will take either an additional morning dose of hydrocortisone or a placebo (a lookalike pill with no active ingredient). All tests are done on a stationary bicycle. Maximal Exercise Test - The subject pedals on a stationary bicycle for about 10 minutes. After a 3-minute warm-up, the workload is increased continuously until either the subject can no longer continue or the physician stops the test for medical reasons. During the exercise, heart rate and heart activity are monitored with an EKG, and the subject wears a nose clip and mouthpiece connected to a breathing tube to measure oxygen use. Blood is drawn before and during the test, totaling no more than 2 tablespoons. Standardized Exercise Test - The subject pedals on a stationary bicycle for 20 minutes, while wearing the nose clip and mouthpiece to measure oxygen use. For the first 5 minutes, the subject pedals at a speed that elicits 50 percent of maximal effort (determined by the maximal exercise test); the next 10 minutes are at 70 percent of maximal effort; and the last 5 minutes are at 90 percent. Blood samples drawn before, during (at 15 and 20 minutes) and after exercise (at 30, 40 and 60 minutes) total less than 1/2 cup. Heart rate and heart activity are monitored during the test with an EKG, and temperature is measured before and at the end of the test.

Corticotropin Releasing Hormone (CRH) is a hypothalamic hormone made up of 41 amino acids. Amino acids are proteins that when combined make up different substances, like hormones. The order of amino acids in CRH, has been determined, meaning that the hormone can now be synthetically reproduced in a laboratory setting. When CRH is released from the hypothalamus it stimulates the pituitary gland to secrete another hormone, ACTH. ACTH then causes the adrenal glands to make a third hormone, cortisol. This process is known as the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. Problems can occur in any of the steps of this process and result in a variety of diseases (Cushing's Syndrome and adrenal insufficiency). Researchers hope that CRH created in a laboratory setting, ovine CRH (oCRH) can be used to help diagnose and treat conditions of the HPA axis. This study will test the relationship for single doses of oCRH in normal volunteers and patients with disorders of the HPA axis. The oCRH will be injected into the patients vein as a single injection or slowly through an IV line over 24 hours. The participants will have blood tests taken to measure hormone levels before, during, and after receiving the oCRH.

High lipid peroxidation and altered antioxidant defenses have been frequently reported in Alzheimer's disease patients. The purpose of this study is to investigate susceptibility to photo-oxidation of isolated erythrocyte membranes, in patients affected by Alzheimer's disease and age- and sex-matched, non demented subjects.

This is an observational study to confirm the presence of recurrent or persistent endogenous Cushing's syndrome in patients who have had primary surgical and/or radiation therapy for Cushing's disease and continue to manifest symptoms and signs of hypercortisolemia.

The classic form of 21-hydroxylase deficiency (prevalence 1/15,000) is the most common cause of congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH). This autosomic recessive disease is responsible for virilization of the external genitalia in girls through androgen hypersecretion during fetal life. Since 1984, the Lyon Pediatric Endocrinology group has proposed prenatal dexamethasone (DEX) for all fetuses at risk of CAH With the aim of preventing fetal androgen hypersecretion in affected girls and avoiding poor long-term results from reconstructive surgery. Prenatal DEX was used in Europe and the USA but its use was recently suspended: in 2007, a Swedish study conducted on 26 children treated with DEX in utero for a short period of time reported cognitive impairments. These data were not confirmed by an American study on the short-term DEX use, which showed potential cognitive impairments in CAH children exposed to DEX for long periods of time. These confusing and controversial results have caused the scientific community to question its position and have resulted in the suspension of the use of prenatal DEX with drastic consequences for CAH girls (virilization; genital surgery etc.). In this context, an evaluation of neuropsychological development under in utero DEX is essential to validate its indication for use during the prenatal period. This study will evaluate outcomes using prospective cognitive and emotional assessments. It will first focus on the unaffected children previously treated in utero in order to assess the adverse effects of the drug. The study will then assess the children with CAH for whom DEX could have beneficial effects.

Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) results from a deficiency of a key enzyme in the biosynthesis of cortisol, mainly 21-hydroxylase, resulting in its classic form a neonatal salt loss syndrome and / or a virilization syndrome in girls. The treatment of the disorder in adulthood involves administering steroidal compounds with the aim to substitute the gluco- and mineralocorticoid deficit on the one hand, and effectively curb the adrenal hyperplasia and adrenal androgen pathway in girls . The terms of glucocorticoid treatment are not clearly codified and are based on several steroidal compounds and various protocols. The advantages in terms of adrenal suppression and disadvantages - including bone and metabolic - different treatments have not been clearly established in the literature. The main objective of this study is to compare among adults with HCS in its classical form the impact on hormonal parameters adrenal suppression glucocorticoid of 3 types of treatment administered to equivalent dose and according to the usual procedures. The secondary objective is to compare in the same patients the impact of different drugs and treatments on several metabolic bone parameters. The study will include 40 adult patients bearing a HCS in its classical form and will include 3 treatment sequences of eight weeks each, during which they will be administered sequentially in random order at random and according to the known equivalences hydrocortisone, prednisone (CORTANCYL) and dexamethasone (DECTANCYL). Randomization will be stratified based on previous DMARDs in the investigation that may be different for different patients, knowing that France hydrocortisone and dexamethasone are used mainly for the treatment of congenital adrenal hyperplasia. The judging criteria will be: i) the criteria of adrenal hormone suppression: plasma levels of testosterone, androstenedione, 17 OHP, ACTH and diurnal variations of the 17 OH progesterone salivary ii) the criteria of the metabolic impact of glucocorticoids: plasma glucose levels , blood lipids, and insulin sensitivity index HOMA-R calculated from glucose and insulin, iii) the criteria of bone impact of glucocorticoids: plasma for CTX bone resorption and bone alkaline phosphatase P1NP for bone formation iv) the living quality criteria evaluated by the PGWB Questionnaire (Psychological General Well-Being). The duration of the study period will be 24 months.

Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia (CAH) is a genetic rare disease, which alters the adrenal production of gluco and mineralo corticoïds. The treatment consists in supplementing children with hydrocortisone. Despite care for these children has improved substantially across decades, short adult height (AH) still remains an important consequence of the disease. About 20% of patients have an AH below 2 standard deviations compared to their expected AH. In the OPALE-Model study, the investigators want to collect data from a cohort of 496 CAH French patients, born between 1970 and 1991 with a known genotype. Using their age, sex, growth, disease, bone maturation and pubertal data, the investigators will build a model which allows to predict their AH using data available at 8 years of age. The growth charts built from this cohort have shown that currently used formula to calculate the predicted AH (Bayley-Pineau's formula) is not applicable to children with CAH. In this project, the investigators plan to compute an AH prediction model using data from children born between 1970 and 1993, and to validate the model using data from a different cohort (i.e. children born between 1994 and 1998). this choice was due to availability of data for computing the model first, and in a second stage, data from more recently born patients.

This qualitative interview-based study will investigate the impact that living with congenital adrenal hyperplasia has for women in the following areas: health-related quality of life (HRQL), psychological health, and health-seeking behaviors.