Addison's and diagnoise's -how easy is it.

[mum2four]

I've been suffering a lot strange symtoms and many of which could easily point to adrenal issues. I'm wondering if anyone has any info on how easy adrernal issues are to diagnoise via blood test.

[mum2four]

glad you getting better with your treatment

I'm on Ivabradine for my tachycardia. Its working well so far and I'm having a Echo in a week or so.

Cant beleive its june already time is going fast this year

[MicheleBB]

I was also always Tachycardic all the time from my AI and it is remarkably better now that I am being treated with the Hydrocortisol..

[MicheleBB]

If you do have adrenal problems you could be suffering Hypoglycemic episodes (hence feeling like you're going to pass out, shakiness,  and the need for sugar, etc...).  I had them all the time before I was diagnosed and they can be really serious!!  Keep some Peanut Butter on hand it works really fast for me. :)

[rumpled]

I understand. I had that issues as well - many of my docs did not take me seriously as well, or would just attribute all my symptoms to the one thing they found - and stop.

This has been a bad year for allergies.

Some doctors like patients that research - others really really detest it. I suggest you hold back on saying anything until you know. I suspect they learn in school that quality of life is meaningless.

[mum2four]

thankyou

I'm starting to tackle these symptom from different angles now. I'm a waiting list for a dietition, gastroenteroligist, I just went back to ask my Dr about my allergies and sinus problems, so I'll hopfully also being seeing a ENT, and then my Dr said if the ENT to talk to ENT about allergy testing I had test when I was younger but not recently. My allergys/intolerances might have gotten better or worse since then.

Hopfully some answers can be found to help me feel better. My biggest frustration is that I have beeing telling Dr's since I was young all about my issues and never once given anything more than a blood test. I have my first xray(NOT including dental xray) to see if there is a reason my hip pain. I'm 32 i hear people talking about test this and test that all the time. I dont understand are supose to ask for anything you want because that just seem silly speically if you are not meant to do the research your self and talk like a Dr to your Dr. Which most Dr hate and assume you are hyperchonract.

I'm confused really confused. I thought I was doing the right thing and my Dr cared about my health and quality of life but it seems I was compleatly wrong.

[rumpled]

It could be the wrong testing, wrong timing or what happens to me - dang lab error...

Yup, sugar over passing out is much better!

[mum2four]

thank you very much.

I hated having to drink the sports drinks cause of the caloies v's water, but I'd still choose the sports drink over the feelings of passing out etc, I cant afford to not to be able to walk around and get things done.

Its frustrating feeling so sick when all my blood work so far is perfect. How can someone feel so sick with perfect blood work. I'm glad to have a diagnoises of IST and Ivabradine and feeling able to walk longer and faster but I'm still not back to normal nor do I have any idea why I'm tachy. Its just frustrating.

thanks for talking to me.

[rumpled]

Prednisone is used, but it is not the med of choice - and those that are on it have way more side effects (now or later) than those on cortef aka hydrocortisone. Cortef is the brand name. Differences are half lifes, how the body uses it, etc.

Pred and hydrocortisone are all in the class of meds that are corticosteroids or glucocorticoids. Most commonly though corticosteroids.

The body *should* manage sodium and potassium to make the body normal - that is what the body does. So that is why an adrenal crisis is why sodium drops, potassium rises - the body cannot manage to normalize itself. It needs more sodium. Ergo, I eat a high sodium diet. That is the renin/aldosterone axis and those are the mineralcorticosteroids.

If your body wants salt - go for it... but sometimes those gatorade things have too much sugar. I go for salt tablets and water.

[mum2four]

wow cause everything I've read so far say's prednisolone is a commen med used. Prednisolone is still from the same group of meds as cortef they are both glucocorticoid but one is called hydrocortisone and the other is called corticosteroid. Not sure what the difference is if the both in the same catorgory of glucocorticoid.

Anyway thank for the info I was also wonder is if high intake of potassium and sodium can effect the blood test results or help people with adrenal issue's. The reason why I ask is that over the past fue years my body seem to demanding more sodium and patassium food's when I stop eating foods high in these I feel intencly fatigued and when I do eat food high in patassium when I feeling like I'm going to pass out it helps some what it dont fix the symptoms 100% but it sure takes the edge off. recently before going on Ivabradine for my sinus tachy(heart) Even my normal intake of foods that helped with the fatiuge in the past was not helping at all I ended up trying a sports drink(poweraide) one day and that seem to help me at one stage I could not get threw my day with out intence feelings of passing out or falling down due to wobbly hevey feeling in my leg's and I would have to alway have a poweraide on me at all time just in case in got to intence. I calapsed on my door step in dec after going to swimming pool to do some light exercises in the pool. It was not a good feeling at all and something I did not want to repeat again. I stopped using the gym and pool cause I cant afford to exausted I have 4 kids to look after, school, house work, and more to try to keep up with. I use to beable to walk for hours without feeling remotly tired. I just want my life back.

[rumpled]

It takes a stimulation test (which takes a few hours), cortisol and or saliva tests at different times of the day (saliva is much easier for this), ACTH blood test (easily botched) and there is an antibody test, but I do not know the name of this. Other tests may help support issues - potassium, sodium, aldosterone, renin and dhea.

You would need to be off the steroids for at least 2 weeks so that it is totally out of your system. Different steroids have different half-lives and so that time may vary. Pred could effect the heart and cause fatigue.

Prednisolone is not a normal treatment for addison's. The normal treatment is cortef - which is more like what the body makes. It also has a shorter half-life so the body is allowed to sleep so you have to take it twice a day. Preds have a half-life that is longer than one day, hence more side-effects, but more active people and those with other diseases concurrent with the adrenal may need it.

[mum2four]

I just remembered another thing that also makes me wonder about adrenal issues's. I was put on prednisolone 25mg tablet for a serious asthma attack(1 of 2 I had with in 3mth's and the only 2 I have had in my life). While taking the tablets I started feeling normal again, and it also took another 3 mth before the effect wore off completly even thoe I only took them for 5 day's. At the time I did not know I was also dealing with tachycardia. I'm not sure how prednisolone effect tachycardia but over all my fatiuge and other symptoms were so much better that when I started to question my symptoms and wonder if something fixable might be causing them.

I'm also not sure how soon after the prednisolone I had the blood test and if that would effect the outcome of test for adrenal issues considering prednisolone is the treatment for addison's.