Serum aldosterone following dexamethasone in depressed patients

Serum aldosterone and cortisol responses to dexamethasone were studied in 17 patients with major depressive disorder, 16 nondepressed hospitalized patients and seven healthy controls. Serum aldosterone was neither blunted nor stimulated following dexamethasone in any of these three groups. Cortisol nonsuppression following dexamethasone, based on a criterion greater than 5 micrograms/dl, was noted in five depressed patients and two nondepressed patients. None of the seven patients with cortisol nonsuppression revealed any apparent abnormalities in their serum aldosterone secretory responses following dexamethasone. Thus, the incorporation of aldosterone measurements was not a useful extension of the dexamethasone test under the clinical conditions of this study.