due to hav.e synacthen tesy at local hospital anyone know how good this is for diagnosis. regards brenda

[roslin]

I am having one tomorrow and I have tried to find out about it. You are supposed to have it early in the morning but mine is at 10.30. It only shows cortisol at one point during the day and not as the saliva test which shows the pattern of cortisol production. Normal is 550 and after the injection it is supposed to increase to 720 (I think) so the injection stimulates the adrenal gland to produce cortisol. It will show if you have Addison's (or Cushing's)or you not. It will apparently NOT show if you have a degree of adrenal insufficiency. I have told the endo that I have done the saliva test but he was not interested. Doesn't seem very useful to me

Roslinxx

[Hidden]

thanks roslin for prompt response hope all goes well t morrow for you regards brenda

[Jackie]

Hi The medical test I had for adrenals was a 24 hours urine collection. A tablet of cortisone at midnight and a blood test at 9am. I know this is the one my endo prefers, I have had it done several times, You seem to be having a little part of that, The test I have described certainly does show adrenal insufficiency

Best wishes,

Jackie

[Hidden in reply to Jackie]

Hi Jackie. Does your test have a name, and is it readily available on the NHS?

In my experience, the saliva test is simply not recognised by the medical profession, and I would like to get my GP on board if only to recognise adrenal insufficiency as a real condition.

I've done the short synacthen test, but as someone on here pointed it's a pretty crude test which will only pick up on something as severe as Addisons disease.

Regards

Sue

[Jackie in reply to Hidden]

Hi Yes it is available nHS,of coure, the dearest. Although I had it privately, I know my endo did use it NHS, she always says it is the best, probably not the cheapest. You could not have it without some one reliable, preferably endo because of the cortisone tablet. So ,even if available say Blue Horizon that would not help. I am not normally allowed any cortisone ( heart) but she says this is the best test and 1 tablet worth the risk for a proper diagnosis.

If you cannot get it done, then if it was me, I would ask the GP or better Endo, to arrange it, if not NHS, cost, always private hospital perhaps, with a medical referral.. They can, results to you them. I have no idea what it would cost. before you do that, check the prices at all the local private hospitals, the 3 main ones, all charge quite differently for everything. Normally you only need one, but I have had autoimmune thyroid disease ( now known as Hashimoto) for 50 years. I cannot, under any circumstances take cortisone, so cannot be treated. I also had renal surgery, exactly where the adrenal gland is. Many years ago, a very big OP and of course, no micro surgery then. It was originally bad but my last test was also bad. Most endos and I suppose GP`s too, think the thyroid should be right first, often that clears up the adrenal problem, then if not, cortisone, of course.I think that is right as the only treatment is cortisone, not a nice drug! I am in a peculiar situation as lot of co morbidities ( not thyroid). You could find the name on the WEB I am sure, put in cortisone or Adrenal tests. Mayo,USA clinic is the site all docs use.

I hope that helps.

Jackie

[Hidden in reply to Jackie]

Thank you Jackie - that's very helpful.

Sue

[Nicola-Jane]

I too am due to have the Synacthen test. I asked my endo for the 24hr saliva test as I believe I have adrenal fatigue but was told that the test wasn't 'effective'. The Synacthen test will only basically show how the adrenals are working when stimulated, it won't show your cortisol levels throughout the day which should be highest in the morning and decrease throughout the day, lowest at night allowing you to sleep. If you really believe you have adrenal fatigue, splash out and have the 24hr saliva test, because adrenal fatigue will cause so many problems regarding your thyroid hormone absorption. With Genova it is £75 for cortisol and dhea (my endo is testing for DHEA).

[morebeans]

The good news is that you might come out of the test feeling great for a wee while. I had the short synacthen test and apparently this temporary 'high' is due to the injection given.

Enjoy it while it lasts!

[Angel_of_the_North in reply to morebeans]

Lucky you. I was in tears during and after mine. Just as I am when I get stressed in "real life". Not nice.

[morebeans in reply to Angel_of_the_North]

Sorry to hear you didn't benefit from this 'wee perk'. I had no expectation of any particular effect from the test, but when I mentioned it to my endo later, he said it's not uncommon. It was certainly very different from how I feel when stressed which, of course is horrible and, for me, much too common an occurrence.