Adrenal function in sick very preterm infants

Some very preterm neonates admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit show circulatory and respiratory problems that improve after administration of steroids. It is unclear whether these symptoms could be caused by adrenal insufficiency. The objective of our study was to investigate the cortisol levels and the cortisol release from the adrenals after ACTH in very preterm infants with and without severe illness and to find whether a relation exists between adrenal function and outcome. An ACTH test (0.5 mug) was performed on d 4 in 21 very preterm infants (gestational age, 25.6-29.6 wk; birth weight, 485-1265 g). Baseline cortisol and 17-hydroxyprogesterone (170HP) levels and the cortisol levels 30, 60, and 120 min after ACTH administration were measured. The Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology was used to measure illness severity. All infants showed an increase in cortisol levels after ACTH, but the cortisol levels were significantly lower in the ventilated more severely ill infants. After adjusting for birth weight and gestational age, the mean baseline cortisol levels and cortisol/17OHP ratios were significantly lower and the 170HP levels significantly higher in the ventilated infants compared with the nonventilated infants. Patients with an adverse outcome had significantly lower baseline cortisol/17OHP ratios and 60-min cortisol levels during ACTH testing (p = 0.002 and p = 0.03, respectively). These data suggest an insufficient adrenal response to stress in sick ventilated very preterm infants with gestational ages younger than 30 wk compared with nonventilated less sick preterm infants. Further studies are required to investigate whether supplementation with physiologic doses of hydrocortisone may benefit the outcome.