In vivo evidence of cortisol secretion by aldosterone-producing adenomas

Abstract. This study was done to confirm that aldosterone-producing adenomas secrete cortisol in vivo. Plasma cortisol and aldosterone concentrations were measured in samples obtained by selective adrenal-vein sampling in 8 patients with primary aldosteronism due to unilateral adenoma. All cases revealed higher adrenal-vein plasma cortisol concentrations on the adenoma side than the opposite, irrespective of adenoma location. These concentrations correlated significantly with plasma aldosterone concentrations (r = 0.972, P < 0.001) in effluents from the adenoma side, but not from the opposite. Plasma concentrations also correlated significantly with estimated adenoma volume (r = 0.918, P < 0.05). These findings strongly suggest that aldosterone-producing adenomas secrete cortisol in vivo. In a second study, we used metyrapone to test 6 patients with adenomas. Their responsiveness to cortisol and corticotrophin was found to be the same as that in normal subjects, suggesting that adenoma-secreted cortisol did not disturb the relationship between corticotrophin and cortisol. We thus concluded that cortisol is secreted concomitantly with aldosterone from aldosterone-producing adenomas under corticotrophin influence.