Frontiers in Endocrinology (Oct 2022)

Outcome of CRH stimulation test and overnight 8 mg dexamethasone suppression test in 469 patients with ACTH-dependent Cushing’s syndrome

  • Mario Detomas,
  • Katrin Ritzel,
  • Isabella Nasi-Kordhishti,
  • Stefan Wolfsberger,
  • Marcus Quinkler,
  • Marco Losa,
  • Viola Tröger,
  • Matthias Kroiss,
  • Matthias Kroiss,
  • Martin Fassnacht,
  • Greisa Vila,
  • Jürgen Bernd Honegger,
  • Martin Reincke,
  • Timo Deutschbein,
  • Timo Deutschbein

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2022.955945
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 13

Abstract

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ObjectiveTo evaluate diagnostic accuracy of the corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) stimulation test and the overnight 8 mg dexamethasone suppression test (DST) for the differentiation of Cushing’s disease (CD) and ectopic Cushing’s syndrome (ECS).MethodsRetrospective study in 6 European centers. Inclusion criteria: patients with a) overt adrenocorticotropin (ACTH)-dependent Cushing’s syndrome at the time of dynamic testing, b) histopathological confirmed tumors and/or c) postoperative biochemical remission and/or adrenal insufficiency. Optimal cut-offs were calculated via receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis using CD as reference.Results469 patients were analyzed [78% females; median age 43 years (IQR 19)]. CRH test and overnight 8 mg DST were performed in 420 [CD, n=394 (94%); ECS, n=26 (6%)] and 237 patients [228 CD (96%), 9 ECS (4%)]. Both tests were performed in 205 patients (44%). The post-CRH %-increase at 30 minutes of both ACTH (cut-off ≥31%, sensitivity 83%, specificity 85%, AUC 0.81) and cortisol (cut-off ≥12%, sensitivity 82%, specificity 89%, AUC 0.86) discriminated best between CD and ECS. A test duration of >60 minutes did not improve diagnostic performance of the CRH test. The optimal cortisol cut-off for the %-suppression during the 8 mg DST was ≥55% (sensitivity 80%, specificity 78%, AUC 0.75).ConclusionThe CRH test has equivalent sensitivity but higher specificity than the 8 mg DST and is therefore the test of first choice. The diagnostic outcome of ACTH and cortisol is well comparable, however, sampling beyond 60 minutes post-CRH does not provide diagnostic benefits.

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