[Bilateral nodular hyperplasia of the adrenal glands; diagnostic problems]

Bilateral adrenal nodular hyperplasia (BAND) is rarely presented as a cause of Cushing Syndrome. The pathogenicity of the disease is unknown and it does not present either symptoms or specific signs, furthermore, its steroid dynamic is atypical and the morphologic tests are not conclusive. The clinical stories of six BAND-diagnosed patients in our Department have been reviewed with the aim of unifying the criteria of the preoperative diagnosis with regard to treatment, comparing our results with literature's wider series. The results from both studies demonstrate an hypophyseal dependence together with some others showing a adrenal autonomy. Thus, our conclusions perpetuate the pathogenic question about BAND (whether is an adrenal primary disfunction or a secondary effect caused by hypophyseal ACTH hypersecretion?) and we point out the usefulness of radioisotopic gammagraphy and abdominal-TAC, since usually they show the bilaterality of the injury at adrenal level.