Adrenal Function in Chronic Pulmonary Tuberculosis

¹ The Tuberculosis Division, Manhattan General Hospital, New York, New York.
² The New York Medical College, Metropolitan Hospital Research Unit, Welfare Island, New York 17, New York.

The adrenal cortex shows biochemical evidence of damage only during the acute and/or febrile phases of tuberculosis, just as in other stressful situations. In the material studied, which has been carefully defined as to age and sex distribution, type and activity of disease, etc., the degree of adrenal damage correlated with elevation of the sedimentation rate and progressive weight loss. Clinical symptoms of hypotension (and probably asthenia, gastrointestinal disturbances and so on, as well) cannot be ascribed to adrenal failure without careful biochemical studies. The indications for adrenal cortical therapy are discussed.