Steroidogenic response of adrenal tissues after administration of ACTH to dogs with hypercortisolemia

    January 2001 in “ Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association ”
    Linda A. Frank, Lynn P. Schmeitzel, J. W. Oliver
    TLDR High adrenal sex hormones in dogs with hypercortisolemia can mislead adrenal hyperplasia diagnosis.
    The study evaluated adrenal sex hormone concentrations in 11 neutered dogs with hypercortisolemia by measuring serum levels before and after ACTH administration. It found that concentrations of one or more adrenal sex hormones were significantly higher than reference values, except for testosterone, which remained within normal ranges. The findings highlighted the necessity of excluding hypercortisolemia when diagnosing adrenal hyperplasia syndrome (alopecia X) in dogs, as elevated adrenal sex hormones could be misleading.
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