Cortisol response to corticotropin and survival in septic shock.
Rothwell PM., Udwadia ZF., Lawler PG.
Corticotropin stimulation tests were used to assess adrenocortical function in 32 patients with septic shock. 13 patients had a poor cortisol response (rise less than 250 nmol/l) to corticotropin, all of whom died. However, there were only 6 deaths among the 19 patients with adequate responses (p less than 0.001). These results suggest that some patients with septic shock may have relative adrenocortical insufficiency.