Adrenocortical Insufficiency due to Spontaneous Bilateral Adrenal Hemorrhage Presented as Acute Abdominal Pain / 이화의대지

ABSTRACT

Adrenocortical insufficiency is the clinical manifestation of deficient production or action of glucocorticoids. It is a life-threatening disorder that can result from primary adrenal failure or secondary adrenal failure due to impairment of the hypothalamic-pituitary axis. Primary adrenocortical insufficiency can be caused by autoimmune adrenalitis, infection (especially, tuberculosis), metastatic cancer, lymphoma, adrenal hemorrhage, infarction or drugs. Among these, adrenal hemorrhage may be caused by anticoagulant drug or heparin therapy, thromboembolic disease, hypercoagulable states such as antiphospholipid syndrome, physical trauma, postoperative state, sepsis and severe stress from any cause. However, even fewer reports exist of adrenocortical insufficiency due to spontaneous bilateral adrenal hemorrhage. We report a rare case of acute adrenocortical insufficiency due to spontaneous bilateral adrenal hemorrhage presenting as acute abdominal pain.