Adrenal incidentalomas: a disease of modern technology offering opportunities for improved patient care

Adrenal incidentalomas (AIs) are found in approximately 4% of patients undergoing abdominal imaging, with peak prevalence in the sixth and seventh decades of life. Detection of AI warrants clinical, biochemical, and radiological evaluation to establish its secretory status and risk of malignancy. Careful review of the lipid content, size, and imaging phenotype of an adrenal mass is needed to evaluate the risk for malignancy. Identification of an AI may be an opportunity to identify an underlying secretory tumor that may have been otherwise unrecognized. A practical approach to investigation and follow-up of AIs is presented in this article.