Beauty

            Addison's disease is a hormone deficiency caused by damage of the adrenal cortex. Thomas Addison's first identified the disease in 1855 while working at Guy's Hospital in London. The main cause of the disease was tuberculosis (TB). TB still remains an important cause of Addison's until the middle of the twentieth century when antibiotics progressively reduced TB's incidence. Since then, the major cause of AD results from an auto-immune reaction in which the body's immune system makes antibodies against the cells of the adrenal cortex and slowly destroys them. AD occurs when the adrenal glands fail to produce enough of the hormone cortisol and in some cases, the hormone aldosterone. Therefore, the disease sometimes called chronic adrenal insufficiency, or hypocortisolism. Cortisol is produced by the adrenal glands, located just above the kidneys. Cortisol helps regulate nutrients, modifiers the body's response to inflammation, stimulates the liver to raise the blood sugar, and also helps to control the amount of water in the body. Cortisol is regulated by the brain's hypothalamus and the pituitary gland. Aldosterone regulates salt and water levels which affect blood volume and blood pressure. Classical AD results from a loss of both cortisol and aldosterone secretion due to damage of both adrenal glands. This condition is also called primary adrenal insufficiency, or inadequate secretion of ACTH by the pituitary gland. This is called secondary adrenal insufficiency. However, there are also several less common causes of AD such as chronic infections, mainly fungai infections adrenal cancer and adrenal haemorrhage and surgical removal of both adrenals.
             The symptoms of addison's disease usually begin gradually. This can take months to years and is known as primary adrenal insufficiency. Symptoms of this disease are shown of severe fatigue and muscle weakness, a loss of appetite and some weight loss.