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TerminatedNCT01246739AUSCUpdated Apr 10, 2024

Adrenalectomy Versus Follow-up in Patients With Subclinical Cushings Syndrome

An interventional study of Adrenalectomy in Adrenal Tumour With Mild Hypercortisolism, sponsored by Region Skane. Terminated at 4 sites in 3 countries. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2024-04-10.

Sponsored by Region Skane · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment

Why this study was terminated
Slow recruitment

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Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
34
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

Incidental findings of adrenal tumours,"incidentalomas", occur in 1-5 % in the general population and 10-25 % of these patients will exhibit biochemical mild hypercortisolism. Although the patients do not have clinical signs of classical Cushing's syndrome, they have an increased risk for hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes mellitus, osteoporosis and obesity.

The hypothesis of the study is, that surgery of the adrenal adenoma responsible for the increased secretion of cortisol, will in part cure or ameliorate the metabolic syndrome.

Read the detailed description

Adrenal incidentalomas, adrenal tumours detected without symptoms and signs of hormonal hypersecretion or malignancy, are common. Depending on modality (MRI, CT. Ultrasonography) adrenal tumours occur in approximately 1-5% of the population. In about 10% of patients, the tumours are bilateral. At autopsy studies adrenal tumours occur in 1% of patients under the age of 30, but in approximately 7% of patients older than 70 years. Investigation of the adrenal tumours focus on to exclude malignancy (which is uncommon), and an increased secretion of hormones (adrenaline, aldosterone, cortisol), so-called functional tumours. However, most often adrenal incidentalomas are non-functional. The most common functional disorder is increased secretion of cortisol, and then usually without clinical stigmata, known as subclinical Cushing's syndrome (or mild hypercortisolism). Clinical stigmata, Cushing's syndrome, is empirically associated with elevated levels of urinary cortisol.

Subclinical Cushing's syndrome occurs in 10-25% of patients with adrenal incidentalomas. The incidence has been estimated at 0.8 / 1,000 inhabitants, making it a common disease.

Diagnosis is based to detect an autonomous release of cortisol from the adrenal gland (a disorder of the so-called hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis).

Fundamental to the diagnosis is that the secretion of cortisol is not inhibited \<50 nmol / L at 8.00, after an overnight test with 1 mg of oral dexamethasone.

In addition, at least one of the following criteria for disturbance of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis is suggested to be present:

  • attenuated or abolished circadian rhythm of cortisol
  • ACTH in the low normal range or supressed
  • DHEAS low or supressed (age dependent)

Numerous studies have shown that high blood pressure, diabetes, impaired glucose tolerance, and unfavourable lipid profile, is common in patients with subclinical Cushing's syndrome, and basically do not differ from patients with overt Cushing's syndrome. At follow-up of patients with adrenal incidentalomas, some patients exhibit intermittent mild hypersecretion of cortisol, others develop overt Cushing's syndrome (unusual) and still some patients with initially normal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, develop a subclinical Cushing's syndrome.

The aim of this study is to investigate if adrenalectomy for subclinical Cushing's syndrome (mild hypercortisolism without clinical signs), result in an improvement in cardiovascular risk factors, cardiac function, and arteriosclerosis compared to follow-up

02

Conditions studied

  • Adrenal Tumour With Mild Hypercortisolism

Keywords

  • mild hypercortisolism
  • adrenal tumour
  • surgical procedures, elective
  • indication
03

In context

Adrenal Gland Neoplasms

62 studies on the registry are indexed under Adrenal Gland Neoplasms; 19 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 34 is close to the median of 37 across 33 interventional studies indexed under Adrenal Gland Neoplasms.

Browse Adrenal Gland Neoplasms studies →

Lead sponsor

Region Skane is the lead sponsor of 386 studies on the registry; 122 are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years and older
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

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Inclusion criteria

  • Adrenal tumour with biochemical mild hypercortisolism defined as pathological dexamethasone suppression test (cortisol > 50 nmol/L at 8.00 am after 1 mg dexamethasone at 10 pm, plus one of the following criteria

    • Low or suppressed adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)
    • Low or suppressed dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA)
    • No or pathological circadian rhythm of cortisol

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Increased levels of 24 hours urinary excretion of cortisol
  • Pregnancy or lactation
  • Inability to understand information or to comply with scheduled follow-up
  • Mild hypercortisolism with bilateral adrenal tumours, without a gradient (lateralization on venous sampling)
05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
34 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • No intervention
    Follow-up

    Patients who are diagnosed with biochemically mild hypercortisolism (so-called subclinical Cushing´s syndrome), who are followed only.

  • Experimental
    Surgery

    Patients diagnosed with adrenal tumour and with biochemically mild hypercortisolism (so-called subclinical Cushing´s syndrome), operated with adrenalectomy

    Procedure: Adrenalectomy

Interventions

  • ProcedureAdrenalectomy

    Adrenalectomy (open or laparoscopic)

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Improvement of blood pressure as assessed by 24 hours blood pressure measurement

    Blood pressure assessed by 24 hours measurement is considered to be improved if at least one of the following outcomes has occurred, and is sustained, during 2 years of follow-up: 1. Normalization of hypertension without medical treatment 2. Unchanged or decreased blood pressure in patients with hypertension if the number or dose of the patient's antihypertensive drug (s) has been reduced 3. Unchanged normal blood pressure in patients who were normotensive at the time of randomization.

    Time frame: At two years after intervention

Secondary outcomes

  1. Normalization of diabetes mellitus

    Normalization of diabetes mellitus according to the criteria of the World Health Organization and assessed by oral glucose tolerance test

    Time frame: At two years after intervention

  2. Decreased body mass index (BMI) to < 30

    Standard assessment of BMI

    Time frame: At two years post intervention

  3. Bone density

    Bone density assessed with dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) at the lumbar spine and hip

    Time frame: At two years post intervention

  4. Blood lipids

    Triglyceride and cholesterol changes of whole serum and of the lipoprotein classes; low-density-lipoprotein (LDL), very-low-density-lipoprotein (VLDL) and high-density-lipoprotein (HDL)

    Time frame: At two years post intervention

  5. Cardiac function

    Cardiac function assessed by echocardiography; left ventricular ejection fraction (EF), left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (LVDD), left ventricular mass index (LVMI), ratio between mitral peak velocity flow of the early filling wave and the atrial wave (E/A ratio)

    Time frame: At two years post intervention

  6. Cognitive function

    Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) for cognitive function

    Time frame: At two years after intervention

  7. Quality of Life assessed by SF 36

    Quality of Life assessed by the generic instrument short form 36 (SF-36).

    Time frame: At two years after intervention

  8. Atherosclerosis

    Carotid ultrasound/duplex scans with evaluation of intimal thickness and plaques. Blood pressure measurement for ankle index

    Time frame: At two years after intervention

  9. Adrenal cortical insufficiency

    Rate of patients with postoperative adrenal cortical insufficiency in patients operated due to subclinical Cushings syndrome

    Time frame: At two years after intervention

07

Study locations

4 sites
  • Århus University Hospital
    Århus, 8000, Denmark
  • Haukeland University Hospital
    Bergen, 5021, Norway
  • Sahlgrenska University Hospital
    Gothenburg, 41345, Sweden
  • Skåne University Hospital-Lund, Department of Surgery
    Lund, 22185, Sweden
08

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
Not marked actual or estimatedDates not marked actual or estimated

The record gives a start of Jun 2011, a primary completion of Feb 2024 and a completion of Feb 2024. It does not say whether these dates are actual or estimated.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Nov 18, 2010
First posted
Nov 23, 2010
Start
Jun 2011
Primary completionActual
Feb 2024
CompletionActual
Feb 2024
Last update
Apr 10, 2024
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Apr 10, 2024, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
09

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT01246739
Lead sponsor
Region Skane
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Nov 23, 2010
Start date
Jun 2011
Primary completion
Feb 2024
Completion
Feb 2024
Last update
Apr 10, 2024

Study contacts

Anders OJ Bergenfelz, MD, PhD
principal investigator · Department of Surgery, Skåne University Hospital, Lund, Sweden

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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This study is terminated, as verified in Mar 2024. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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