ORAL USE OF CORTISONE IN CHRONIC ADRENAL CORTICALn INSUFFICIENCY

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Abstract
The recent availability of cortisone has made possible great improvement in the treatment of chronic adrenal cortical insufficiency. The effect of its parenteral administration in patients with Addison's disease has been well documented,1 but there is less information on the adequacy of oral therapy. Further data on the latter method of treatment are desirable in regard to both clinical and metabolic responses. Oral therapy, if proved effective, would permit the patient to adjust his dose easily, in accordance with the severity of symptoms, and, at the same time, would obviate the inconvenience of injections. The six patients whose case histories provide the material for this report were studied with special reference to their responses to oral administration of cortisone. Four patients had uncomplicated Addison's disease; one had Addison's disease and diabetes mellitus; and another had symptoms of hypoadrenocorticism, secondary to removal of a chromophobe adenoma of the pituitary. The