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Serum Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate Concentrations in Secondary Adrenal Insufficiency^*

Third Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tokyo Hongo, Tokyo
Fourth Department of Internal Medicine (A.I., K.S., J.I.), Saitama Medical School Iruma-gun, Saitama, Japan

Address requests for reprints to: Tohru Yamaji, M.D., Third Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113, Japan.

Serum dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S) concentrations were studied in 84 untreated patients with secondary adrenal insufficiency. Compared to values in normal subjects of corresponding age, DHEA-S levels were decreased in 80 patients. The decrease was unrelated to the cause of the secondary adrenal insufficiency or the serum PRL level. Serum cortisol concentrations, on the other hand, were low in 71 patients and low normal in the remaining 13. Serum DHEA-S levels were decreased in 11 of these 13 patients. The frequency of decreased serum DHEA-S levels in patients with secondary adrenal insufficiency was significantly higher than that of decreased cortisol levels. These results suggest that decreased serum DHEA-S levels reflect deficient ACTH secretion in secondary adrenal insufficiency and that simultaneous determination of serum DHEA-S and cortisol levels is useful in the diagnosis of this pathological state.

^* This work was supported in part by a research grant from the Ministry of Health and Welfare, Disorders of Adrenal Hormones Committee, Japan.

Received January 12, 1987.

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