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Cushing's syndrome   

Overview | Symptoms | Treatment | Prevention

Alternative names:

Hypercortisolism

Definition:

A disease caused by increased production of cortisol or by excessive use of cortisol or other steroid hormones.

Causes and Risks

Cushing's syndrome is a condition that results from an excess of cortisol, a hormone produced by the adrenal glands. The most common cause of Cushing's syndrome is Cushing's disease caused by excessive production of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) by the pituitary gland. ACTH stimulates the adrenal glands to produce cortisol.

Cushing's syndrome can be caused by a tumor of the pituitary gland, a tumor of the adrenal gland, a tumor somewhere other than the pituitary or adrenal glands (ectopic Cushing's syndrome), or by long-term use of corticosteroids (drugs commonly used to treat conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis and asthma).

Risk factors are adrenal tumor or pituitary tumor, chronic therapy with corticosteroids, and being female.

See also:

• pituitary Cushing's (Cushing's disease)
• Cushing's syndrome - exogenous
• ectopic Cushing's syndrome
• Cushing's syndrome caused by adrenal tumor

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