Changes in Plasma 11-Hydroxycorticosteroids after ACTH, Insulin and Dexamethasone in Neonatal Infants

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Abstract
The changes in plasma 11-OHCS levels after administration of ACTH, insulin and dexamethasone were studied in the neonatal infants aged 1–5 days and the children aged 4–15 yrs. The resting levels of plasma 11-OHCS in the 1 day old infants were 13.1 ± 1.7 μg/100 ml and remained at this level for several days. These values were quite similar to those in the control children. After the administrations of 5 μg/kg of synthetic β1–24 ACTH and 0.1 U/kg of regular insulin, the plasma 11-OHCS levels of the neonatal infants were found to be elevated to 26.4 ± 1.6 and 27.2 ± 4.3 μg/100 ml respectively. In the dexamethasone suppression test, the plasma 11-OHCS levels were reduced to 3.3 ± 1.0 μg/100 ml in the neonatal infants. Similar changes in plasma 11-OHCS were obtained in the control children following the administration of ACTH, insulin or dexamethasone. It is suggested that the adrenal cortex of the neonatal infants responds normally to ACTH and that the function of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal system involved in the stress response and the negative feedback is already mature in the neonatal stage.

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