Addisonian Crisis

Addisonian crisis, also known as acute adrenal insufficiency, occurs in both men and women of all age groups. Adrenal insufficiency is a medical condition in which the adrenal glands stop making hormones that are important for certain bodily functions. Because adrenal insufficiency symptoms usually progress slowly, they are usually ignored until a stressful event like an illness causes them to become life-threatening, in which the condition is called a crisis.

Addisonian Crisis Information

What Is an Addisonian Crisis?

Adrenal insufficiency is a medical condition in which the adrenal glands stop making hormones important for certain bodily functions. Adrenal insufficiency occurs in all age groups and afflicts men and women equally. There are two main types of adrenal insufficiency:

Primary adrenal insufficiency (also known as Addison's disease)
Secondary adrenal insufficiency.

Because adrenal insufficiency symptoms usually progress slowly, they are usually ignored until a stressful event like an illness or an accident causes them to become overwhelming and life threatening. This is called an addisonian crisis, or acute adrenal insufficiency.

An addisonian crisis rarely happens in those people with secondary adrenal insufficiency.

Symptoms

In most cases of adrenal insufficiency, symptoms are severe enough that patients seek medical treatment before an addisonian crisis occurs. However, in about 25 percent of patients, adrenal insufficiency symptoms first appear during an addisonian crisis.

Addisonian crisis symptoms include:

Sudden penetrating pain in the lower back, abdomen, or legs
Severe vomiting and diarrhea
Dehydration
Low blood pressure
Loss of consciousness.

If left untreated, this type of crisis can be fatal.

(Click Addisonian Crisis Symptoms for more information.)

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