Conditions: Development
Keywords: adolescents puberty androgens hyperandrogenemia
Allocation: NON_RANDOMIZED | Intervention model: SINGLE_GROUP
Enrollment: 50
Healthy volunteers: yes

Brief summary:
In girls with elevated androgens the precise source of androgen excess throughout puberty and early adolescence has not been carefully examined. The investigators propose to examine whether the adrenal gland produces the majority of androgens during puberty by studying the differences in androgen responses to adrenocorticotropin hormone (ACTH) administration in normal weight (NW) and obese (OB) girls ages 7-18. The investigators' analyses will compare steroid changes before and 60 min after ACTH administration in NW and OB girls.

Detailed description:
Subjects will have blood drawn at 1900 hr for baseline hormone measurements. At 2200 hr each subject will take a single oral dose of dexamethasone at 2200 hr. At 0700 hr the following day, subjects will have a blood sample drawn for hormone measurements. After this blood sample, 0.25 mg adrenocorticotropin hormone (ACTH) will be administered as an iv bolus. At 30 and 60 minutes after Cosyntropin, blood samples will be obtained for repeat hormone measurements.

Arms:
arm 1: Subjects will have blood drawn at 1900 hr for baseline hormone measurements. At 2200 hr each subject will take a single oral dose of dexamethasone at 2200 hr. At 0700 hr the following day, subjects will have a blood sample drawn for hormone measurements. After this blood sample, adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) will be administered as an iv bolus. At 30 and 60 minutes after ACTH, blood samples will be obtained for repeat hormone measurements. arm 2: Subjects will have blood drawn at 1900 hr for baseline hormone measurements. At 2200 hr each subject will take a single oral dose of dexamethasone at 2200 hr. At 0700 hr the following day, subjects will have a blood sample drawn for hormone measurements. After this blood sample, adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) will be administered as an iv bolus. At 30 and 60 minutes after ACTH, blood samples will be obtained for repeat hormone measurements.

Interventions: intervention 1: Adrenocorticotropin intervention 2: Dexamethasone
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: Subjects will have blood drawn at 1900 hr for baseline hormone measurements. At 2200 hr each subject will take a single oral dose of dexamethasone at 2200 hr. At 0700 hr the following day, subjects will have a blood sample drawn for hormone measurements. After this blood sample, adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) will be administered as an iv bolus. At 30 and 60 minutes after Cosyntropin, blood samples will be obtained for repeat hormone measurements. intervention 2: Subjects will have blood drawn at 1900 hr for baseline hormone measurements. At 2200 hr each subject will take a single oral dose of dexamethasone at 2200 hr. At 0700 hr the following day, subjects will have a blood sample drawn for hormone measurements. After this blood sample, 0.25 mg adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) will be administered as an iv bolus. At 30 and 60 minutes after Cosyntropin, blood samples will be obtained for repeat hormone measurements.

Protocol document: