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incidental bilateral adrenal calcification was detected in a man during evaluation for low back pain. He had been born a double footling breech at home, and probably had bilateral adrenal hemorrhage. He now has normal adrenal function. This case is discussed, and the literature is reviewed.
Computed tomography is the preferred imaging modality for adrenal lesions, particularly pheochromocytoma. Central hemorrhagic degeneration of a pheochromocytoma can cause the mass to resemble a benign adrenal cyst. Such a case is illustrated and the preoperative evaluation discussed.
We herein describe a case of adrenal hemorrhage on the right side in a forty-five-year-old woman. Her medical history did not show any evidence of an acute bleeding. The hematoma was removed and adrenalectomy performed. A veinectasis and a localized vasculitis are discussed as causes of bleeding.
We report an unusual case of spontaneous massive retroperitoneal hemorrhage from an adrenal gland metastasis. After medical therapy failed to stabilize the patient's condition, surgical exploration revealed a large retroperitoneal hematoma arising from a right adrenal gland metastasis. At the time of thoracoabdominal exploration in the lower lobe of right lung a small tumor nodule was palpated and resected. Pathologic examination of both lung and abdominal lesions revealed squamous cell carcinoma thought to have been primary in the lung. A review of the literature reveals that metastatic lesions to the adrenal gland are infrequently encountered clinically and rarely hemorrhage; the first such case in which massive retroperitoneal hemorrhage was a complication is reported in the urologic literature.
Cross-sectional imaging of the adrenal glands is described, and examples of pheochromocytoma, bilateral adrenal hyperplasia, aldosteronoma, and metastasis are presented. The clinical diagnosis and radiologic findings of these and other adrenal lesions are discussed. Noninvasive and invasive procedures, and their usefulness in diagnosing adrenal abnormalities, are reviewed, and the value of computed tomography, ultrasonography, radionuclide scintigraphy, and angiography are analyzed.
Adrenal carcinomas are rare. We present four surgically and pathologically proved large right adrenal carcinomas studied by computed tomography, angiography, and other imaging modalities. Computed tomography demonstrated large nonhomogeneous right upper quadrant masses in all four cases, but the adrenal origin of the mass could not be ascertained by computed tomography in three patients due to the transverse display of the anatomy. Ultrasonography provided important additional information in these cases. Arteriography was diagnostic in each case by demonstrating minimal to marked tumor vascularity supplied by adrenal arteries. We also present, for differential diagnostic purposes, a proved benign adrenal hemorrhagic cyst with computed tomography and angiography findings indistinguishable from those of adrenal carcinomas. Computed tomography does not eliminate the need for angiography in patients with large right upper quadrant masses suspected of being an adrenal carcinoma.
The computed tomography appearance of adrenal hemorrhage secondary to adrenal vein thrombosis is illustrated. The lesion appeared radiolucent, with a small focal calcification, mimicking an adrenal adenoma. Hypercoagulopathy was an underlying factor in this patient with myelofibrosis and chronic myelogenous leukemia.
The susceptibility of the endocrine tissues to compound-induced lesions may be ranked in the following decreasing order of frequency: adrenal, testis, thyroid, ovary, pancreas, pituitary, and parathyroid. The first two are by far the most frequently affected. Pathologists unaccustomed to the evaluation of endocrine effects are often unaware of the number of compounds producing specific lesions in the adrenal. Compounds may produce changes in one of the following zones: fasciculata/reticularis, glomerulosa, or medulla. They are listed in this paper by affected zones. In the fasciculata/reticularis lesions are generally either degenerative or proliferative; in the glomerulosa they are necrotic or atrophic; in the medulla lesions are generally hypertrophic or proliferative.
We describe the appearance of an adrenal pseudocyst on MRI and CT. The MR characteristics of the lesion were noteworthy in that the lesion had two components with different imaging characteristics. The larger component was of low signal intensity on both T1- and T2-weighted images and might have been confused with an adrenal adenoma.
Acute bilateral adrenal hemorrhage secondary to indirect trauma is rare. This condition may mimic an acute surgical abdomen. We present such a patient in whom the anatomic diagnosis was confirmed by serial computed tomographic (CT) scans, and adrenal insufficiency by biochemical tests. The response to steroid replacement therapy was remarkable. Although the patient had normal coagulation parameters at the time of presentation, subtle changes resulting from earlier anticoagulation may have been a contributing factor.
Clinically significant adrenal hemorrhage due to adrenal metastases has rarely been reported. We describe three cases of this unusual entity, two from lung carcinoma and one from sarcoma. Adrenal hemorrhage was bilateral in two patients, and was the presenting manifestation of malignancy in two. A computed tomography diagnosis of hemorrhage within bilateral adrenal metastases was made when adrenal masses rapidly enlarged in one case, and when previously resolving hematomas showed enlargement in a second case. The third case was believed to represent a pheochromocytoma preoperatively. We conclude that significant adrenal hemorrhage can result from adrenal metastases and can be the presenting manifestation of metastatic tumor. In the patient without discernible risk factors for adrenal hemorrhage, underlying malignancy should be considered as a possible cause, even if the hemorrhage is bilateral.
Two cases of the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of adrenal ganglioneuromas are presented. The appearance on spin-echo sequences is that of a heterogeneous mass, increasing in signal intensity in T2-weighted images, with associated areas of decreased signal, consistent with findings in the one previously reported case. The diagnosis of adrenal ganglioneuroma should be considered in the differential diagnosis of heterogeneous adrenal masses.
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RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: To compare conventional radiofrequency coil reception techniques with parallel coil array acquisition methods in adrenal tissue visualization and to evaluate the dependence of temporal resolution on image quality in adrenal magnetic resonance magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Using a 1.5 T MR imager, conventional and parallel sampled sequences were acquired in 10 healthy volunteers and 10 patients with adrenal lesions. The imaging protocol consisted of: conventional (TR/TE 4,730/125 ms; FA 150 degrees; NA 1; AT 25 s), and two parallel imaging SMASH techniques (TR/TE 4,090/125 ms; FA 150 degrees; NA 1 resulting in an AT of 12 s, as well as NA 2 resulting in an AT of 24 s) with generalized autocalibration T(2)-weighted turbo spin echo sequences with 5 mm slice thickness, 1.6 mm in-plane resolution, and an acceleration factor 2. Severity of breathing motion and aliasing artifact and overall image quality were rated on five-point scales and evaluated with student's t test; a differential receiver operating characteristic (DROC) analysis was performed. RESULTS: Adrenal gland findings included adenomas, metastases, and hemorrhages. Acceleration of conventional turbo spin echo sequence with one signal average led to an increase in diagnostic power (DROC 0.362) as well as significant improvement in overall image quality (P(Volunteers) =.017; P(Patients) =.042) and reduction of breathing motion artifact in patients (P(Patients) =.012) while improving the temporal resolution. Parallel imaging with two signal averages resulted in further improvement of image quality over conventional imaging (DROC 0.303), (P(Volunteers) =.045; P(Patients) =.022), in the same acquisition time as the conventional method. CONCLUSION: Parallel acceleration of sequences used for adrenal tissue visualization leads to a significant increase in diagnostic quality by significantly reducing breathing motion artifacts without sacrificing contrast indispensable for adrenal lesion characterization.
We report three cases of isolated adrenal haematoma diagnosed at admission to the Emergency Department. Post-traumatic adrenal haematoma have been observed in 2% of patients with abdominal injury and can be life threatening in cases of bilateral haemorrhage with risk of acute adrenocortical insufficiency. Diagnosis remains difficult due to absence of clinical and biological specific parameters. Therefore, abdominal CT examination should be the gold standard in management of abdominal trauma patients.
BACKGROUND: There are no guidelines that exist to direct the management of incidental adrenal masses (IAM) in children. The aim of this study was to determine if there is a subset of IAMs that could be safely observed. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted of all adrenal masses that were either resected or biopsied between 1990 and 2002 (n = 91) at the Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto. IAM was defined as a solitary adrenal mass discovered by either physical examination (n = 6; 23.1%) or diagnostic imaging for other indications (n = 20; 76.9%), without metastases or biochemical activity. RESULTS: Twenty-six (28.6%) IAMs were detected (mean age, 4.6 years [range, antenatal to 17 years]; 11 boys, 15 girls). Pathologic diagnoses included neuroblastoma (n = 7), ganglioneuroma (n = 6), adrenocortical adenoma (n = 4), adrenal cyst/pseudocyst (n = 3), adrenal hemorrhage (n = 3), ganglioneuroblastoma (n = 1), nodular cortical hyperplasia (n = 1), and teratoma (n = 1). Eight masses were malignant (30.8%). Two of the 5 masses discovered on antenatal ultrasound scan were neuroblastoma. In comparing the benign with malignant lesions, there was no significant difference in mean size (4.8 cm v 4.3 cm; P =.57), radiologic characteristics, or mode of presentation. Benign lesions occurred more frequently in older children (mean age, 6.5 years v 1.3 years; P =.03). CONCLUSIONS: Clear guidelines cannot be established to predict benign IAM in children. Given the high proportion of malignant lesions, we recommend that all pediatric IAMs should be resected.
MR imaging is used commonly for imaging the adrenal glands. Its high-contrast resolution and multiplanar imaging capability enables the detection and characterization of many adrenal masses. The advent of chemical-shift imaging revolutionized the role of MR imaging in characterizing adrenal masses. In this article, the authors discuss the range of MR appearances of common and uncommon adrenal masses, focusing on the nonfunctioning incidentally discovered mass and its characterization methods. MR imaging is continuously improving. The increasing use of higher strength magnets and the introduction of newer coils, sequences, and techniques will help detect and characterize very small adrenal masses, quantify their fat content, and provide exquisite morphologic images of the gland and its vascular supply.
Human pregnancy is marked by alterations in several endocrine systems--perhaps most notably, the striking increase in steroid hormone production by the adrenals of the fetus and mother. Morphologically and physiologically, the human fetal adrenal glands are remarkable organs. In proportion to the adult organs, the adrenal cortex is the largest organ of the fetus. At term, they produce more steroid and weigh the same as adrenal glands of the adult. Much of the steroid that is released by the fetal and maternal adrenals during pregnancy is the sulfated form of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA-S), which is used by the placenta to produce estrogens. Herein, we discuss the physiologic and pathophysiologic hormonal changes of the fetal and maternal adrenals during the course of pregnancy.