HORMONES-ENDOCRINE GENERALITIES

SUMMARY

1. If you want to test for hyposecretion of a hormone, try to stimulate it, e.g. ACTH stimulation test for adrenal insufficiency.

2. If you want to test for hypersecretion of a hormone, try to suppress it, e.g. dexamethasone suppression test for Cushing syndrome.

3. Negative feedback decreases the deviation from the normal and is important in homeostasis. Most endocrine glands are controlled by negative feedback.

4. Primary abnormality refers to disease in the gland that secretes the hormone.

5. Secondary refers to disease of the gland that controls the primary gland. Tertiary refers to disease of the gland that controls the gland that controls the primary gland.

Reference(s)

Wilkinson, I., Furmedge, D. and Sinharay, R. (2017). Oxford handbook of clinical medicine. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Get it on Amazon.
Feather, A., Randall, D. and Waterhouse, M. (2020). Kumar And Clark’s Clinical Medicine. 10th ed. S.L.: Elsevier Health Sciences. Get it on Amazon.
Hannaman, R. A., Bullock, L., Hatchell, C. A., & Yoffe, M. (2016). Internal medicine review core curriculum, 2017-2018. CO Springs, CO: MedStudy.
Therapeutic Guidelines. Melbourne: Therapeutic Guidelines Limited. https://www.tg.org.au [Accessed 2021].