Adrenal Hypersecretory Syndrome

Your adrenal glands release hormones that control important functions of your body, including initiating sexual maturation, controlling your responses to stress and managing your blood sugar levels. An adrenal gland disorder like adrenal hypersecretory syndrome can interfere with your hormone levels, resulting in health conditions like Cushing's disease.

Cushing's Disease

• Cushing's disease is a fairly rare hormonal disorder, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. It occurs when your body produces excessively high levels of cortisol over long periods of time and is sometimes called hypercortisolism. Cortisol is used by your body to regulate your metabolism, balance the effects of insulin and maintain your blood pressure. Cushing's disease usually develops in adults between the ages of twenty and fifty years of age.

Causes

• Cushing's disease can be caused by adrenal hypersecretory syndrome. This condition occurs when a tumor grows on one or both of your adrenal glands. This tumor, called an adrenal adenoma, causes your adrenal glands to secrete more cortisol than your body needs. This form of Cushing's disease is the least common and occurs in women more than 5 times as often as it does in men.

Symptoms

• If you have Cushing's disease, you will develop symptoms like gaining weight in the area of your upper body, neck and face while having relatively slender arms and legs. You could feel extreme fatigue and have trouble with muscle weakness. Your skin will become thinner and you will bruise more easily and take longer to heal after being hurt. Your bones could get weaker, leaving you at risk for experiencing fractures of your ribs or spinal column.

Treatment

• If your Cushing's disease is caused by adrenal hypersecretory syndrome, then your doctor will treat it by treating the adrenal hypersecretory syndrome. She can surgically remove the adrenal adenoma that is causing your adrenal glands to overproduce cortisol. Surgery can usually be performed laparoscopically. After surgery, you could need to take steroidal medications while your adrenal glands return to their full functional capabilities, according to "Essentials of General Surgery."

Considerations

• The adrenal adenoma that causes adrenal hypersecretory syndrome can badly damage your adrenal gland. While it might be possible for your surgeon to only remove the tumor and the most damaged portion of the adrenal gland, the entire gland might need to be removed. Adrenal adenomas are rarely cancerous, so they are at a low risk for spreading to other parts of your body.