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Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate levels are not suppressible by glucocorticoids before adrenarche
P M Kreitzer1, S L Blethen, R S Festa
1Department of Pediatrics, Schneider Children's Hospital of Long Island, Jewish Medical Center, New Hyde Park, New York 11042.
The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism
|December 1, 1989
Abstract:
We measured dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S) levels in children before and after high dose prednisone therapy. In older children (postadrenarchal), there was a 70% decrease in DHEA-S levels after 1 week. However, even after a month of therapy, DHEA-S was detectable in serum. In contrast, in younger (preadrenarchal) children, the low initial DHEA-S levels were not decreased by prednisone therapy. These findings suggest that there are two distinct regulatory pathways leading to DHEA-S, one of which is independent of ACTH.