Addison’s Disease

By:Amanda page
04-09-2021
 • Addison’s disease is when your body
What is doesn’t produce enough of certain
hormones. In this disease, your
Addison's adrenal glands produce too little
cortisol and often, too little,
disease? aldosterone.
 • This disease is caused by damage to your
What are the adrenal glands.

causes and • The symptoms can include extreme fatigue,

weight loss and discreet decreased appetite,
symptoms of darkening of your skin, low blood pressure, salt
craving, low blood sugar, nausea diarrhea or
Addison's vomiting, abdominal pain, muscle or joint pain,
irritability, depression or other behavioral
disease? symptoms, and body hair loss or Sexual
dysfunction in women.
 • For a diagnosis, your doctor can give you a
blood test or an ACTH stimulation test, which is
where it signals your adrenal glands to produce
cortisol. It then measures the level of cortisol in
How do you get your blood before and after injection of
synthetic ACTH.
diagnosed for • Treatment for Addison’s disease involves
medication. You would be given hormone
Addison's disease replacement therapy to correct the level of
steroid hormones your body isn’t producing.
and what is the Some options for treatment include oral
corticosteroids such as: hydrocortisone To
treatment for it. replace cortisol these hormones are given on a
schedule to mimic the normal 24-hour
fluctuation of cortisol levels. Another one is
Fludrocortisone acetate To replace aldosterone.