Drug-induced adrenal insufficiency
Prevention
To reduce the risk of developing this condition:
- Use glucocorticoids for the shortest time possible, in the smallest dose possible
- Take steroids every other day, instead of daily
- Use steroid-sparing agents (for the treatment of asthma or arthritis, for example)
People who use inhaled steroids can reduce their exposure by using a spacer, and by rinsing out their mouth after inhaling the medication.
References
Stewart PM. The Adrenal Cortex. In: Kronenberg HM, Shlomo M, Polonsky KS, Larsen PR, eds. Williams Textbook of Endocrinology. 11th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier;2008: chap 14.
Images
Review Date: 08/09/2008
Reviewed By: David C. Dugdale, III, MD, Professor of Medicine, Division of
General Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington
School of Medicine; and Deborah Wexler, MD, Assistant Professor of
Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Endocrinologist, Massachusetts
General Hospital. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical
Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.
A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org)
