Addison’s Disease

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Addison’s Disease, chronic endocrine disorder resulting from underactive adrenal glands that do not produce enough corticosteroid hormones. The disease was first described by the British physician Thomas Addison in 1855. Adrenal glands may be adversely affected by a severe infection, such as tuberculosis, massive bleeding of the adrenals, or surgery affecting the glands, such as removal of a tumor, but in most cases the origin of the disease is unknown. The resulting lack of hormone secretion causes such symptoms as weakness and fatigue, weight loss, low blood pressure, gastrointestinal distress, low blood sugar, depression and irritability, and increased skin pigmentation.

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