Active clinical trials for "Adrenal Hyperplasia, Congenital"

Majority of patients with hypertension have primary hypertension (without an underlying cause). Secondary hypertension (due to an underlying disease) is important to recognize, as treatment can lead to cure of hypertension. Primary aldosteronism (PA) is the most common cause of secondary hypertension, and can be found in 5-10% of patients locally. PA is caused by excessive release of a hormone (aldosterone) from the adrenal glands, which can be unilateral (one gland) or bilateral (both glands). Distinction between two is crucial as unilateral disease is treated with the aim of cure by surgery, and bilateral disease is treated by medication. It has been shown that excess aldosterone has other harmful effects in addition to hypertension, such as directly affecting the heart, blood vessels, kidneys, diabetes and quality of life. This is supported by studies showing reversal of these effects after treatment for PA. In addition, improvements after surgery appears to be superior to medical treatment, although studies have found variable results. Hence, the investigators aim to accurately subtype patients with PA into unilateral or bilateral disease and study the post-treatment response after both surgery and medicine with regards to the effects on blood pressure, cardiovascular, renal, metabolic and quality of life.

The purpose of this study is to assess the agreement of clinical performance between the proposed NeoPlex 4 assay and NeoPlex System and the comparator devices in clinical use in newborn screening programs for detection of T4, TSH, 17-OHP and IRT.

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.

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.

With our retrospective study the investigators show the limitations of the posterior retroperitoneal adrenalectomy by analyzing anatomical parameters. The investigators compared the data from one patient who underwent a conversion with 13 patients without a conversion. Furthermore, they explored the influence of these parameters on the operation time and excluded the patient who had a conversion from this analysis. The investigators hypothesize that by determining anatomical characteristics on cross-sectional imaging (CT or MRI), they can show the limitations of the posterior retroperitoneal adrenalectomy to prevent patients from being converted to lateral transperitoneal adrenalectomy.

The birth of a child with a disorder of sex development (DSD) is stressful for parents and members of the healthcare team. The "right" decisions about gender assignment (is it a boy? a girl?) and the best course of action (e.g., should there be surgery? what kind? when?) are not obvious. While there have been large advances in diagnostic assessments like genetic and endocrine testing, the tests do not always show what caused the DSD. And, even when the tests do reveal an explanation for the DSD, knowing what happened genetically or hormonally does not usually lead to a single "correct" treatment plan. Instead, it is likely that there are different acceptable treatment options - and parents will need to make decisions based, in part, on their personal preferences, values, and cultural background. Adding more stress to the situation is knowledge that many of the decisions that need to be made by parents early in a child's life are irreversible and exert life-long consequences for the child and the family. To support parents becoming actively involved in making such decisions, and to reduce the likelihood of future worry and regret about decisions that have been made, the investigators will create a decision support tool (DST). The DST will help educate families about typical and atypical sex development of the body, the process by which DSD are diagnosed (especially how to interpret genetic test results), and possible relationships between diagnostic/genetic testing, decisions about care, and known consequences of those decisions on their child and entire family. The DST will be used by parents of young children together with their child's health care provider. The investigators will bring together a network of researchers, health care providers, representatives of patient support and advocacy organizations, and parents of children with DSD to share their experiences. Participants of this network will be involved at each stage of creating the DST, revising it, and putting it into practice. At the end of this project, the investigators will have a fully formed DST that will be available for parents to use with their child's healthcare team as they are first learning their child may have a DSD.