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Start free with EleplanAcute adrenal insufficiency
ORPHA:95409Clinical syndrome
Also called Acute adrenal failure · Acute adrenocortical insufficiency · Addisonian crisis · Adrenal crisis · Adrenocortical crisis
What it is
A primary adrenal insufficiency caused by a sudden defective production of adrenal steroids (cortisol and aldosterone). It represents an emergency, thus the rapid recognition and prompt therapy are critical for survival even before the diagnosis is made.
Key facts
- Age of onset
- All ages
- Inheritance
- Autosomal recessive, Not applicable, X-linked dominant
- Classified as
- Clinical syndrome
Signs and symptoms
Very common80–99%
14Common30–79%
16- Acute respiratory tract infection
- Androgen insufficiency
- Decreased circulating aldosterone level
- Decreased urinary potassium
- Hyperkalemia
- Hyperkalemic metabolic acidosis
- Hyperuricemia
- Hypoglycemia
- Hyponatremia
- Hypotonia
- Increased circulating renin level
- Normocytic anemia
- Orthostatic hypotension
- Renal insufficiency
- Renal salt wasting
- Seizure
Sometimes5–29%
12- Adrenal hypoplasia
- Arthralgia
- Decreased female libido
- Delayed puberty
- Dry skin
- Hypercalcemia
- Myocardial infarction
- Salt craving
and 4 more in this range
These ranges are how often a sign appears across everyone diagnosed, not a prediction for one person — most people have some of these and not others. Orphanet also records findings that are specifically absent in this disease; those are in the data but not listed here.
ICD-10 codes
Related health topics
Reached through the ICD-10 categories this disease is filed under, so these describe the broader group rather than this disease specifically.
Cross-references
Orphadata Science: Free access data from Orphanet. © INSERM 1999. Data version 2026-06-23. Available under CC BY 4.0. This is a reference, not medical advice.
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