Adrenal Steroid Concentrations in Children Seven to Seventeen Years of Age

Abstract

During puberty, serum steroid concentrations change dramatically. The objective of this study was to determine the adrenal steroid concentrations in children from 7 to 17 years of age. Tanner stage was determined in each child by physical examination. 11-Deoxycortisol, pregnenolone, 17-hydroxypregnenolone, 17-hydroxyprogesterone and testosterone were quantified by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Androstenedione and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate were measured by immunoassay. The median and central 95% of the steroid concentrations were determined for age, gender, and Tanner stage. Except for 11-deoxycortisol, all of the steroids exhibited an increase in concentration after age 7-9 years in both boys and girls. 11-Deoxycortisol, which is made exclusively in the adrenal cortex, declined with age and Tanner stage. This suggests that a rise in gonadal function and decreased efficiency of 11beta-hydroxylase with age may contribute to an increase in the remaining steroids. Testosterone concentrations increased more dramatically in boys, but increases were seen with each Tanner stage in girls.

The pubertal transition in 179 healthy Danish children: associations between pubarche, adrenarche, gonadarche, and body composition

“…Obviously, others have suggested an increase in adrenal androgens with age but based on crosssectional data (19,20). Few longitudinal studies of adrenal function in children exist, and these are primarily based on very few subjects (21) or urinary samples (22,23).…”

Liquid Chromatography–Tandem Mass Spectrometry Assay for Androstenedione, Dehydroepiandrosterone, and Testosterone with Pediatric and Adult Reference Intervals

“…There have been relatively few reports of androgen concentrations in healthy children (27)(28)(29)(30)(31)(32) because commercial assays for measurement of androgens lack specificity and sensitivity with pediatric samples. We report data on concentrations of androstenedione, DHEA, and testosterone in more than 2500 healthy children from early childhood through puberty.…”

Implementation of a Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry Assay for Eight Adrenal C-21 Steroids and Pediatric Reference Data

“…The concentrations and changes over time of the adrenal hormones during childhood measured with our assay were well comparable to these RIA techniques published earlier, all using steroid extraction and chromatography to overcome matrix effects and cross-reactivity of antibodies. Meikle et al [14] previously reported a more detailed study of reference ranges for 17OHP and 11S in children older than 7 years. Similar to our study an increase of 17OHP was detected with older age for boys and girls.…”

“…Several methods covering different steroids with different sensitivities and specificities have been published [12]. However, previous studies reported detailed reference data for selected steroids only [13,14,15] or were not covering the whole age range [16]. A profile covering the most relevant adrenal steroids in one LC-MS/MS method reporting normal reference intervals from birth to adulthood is still lacking.…”