Clinical Trial: Exercise Capacity and Recovery in Addison's Disease

Study Status: Recruiting
Recruit Status: Unknown status
Study Type: Interventional




Official Title: Effect of Hydrocortisone Stress Dose on Exercise Capacity and Post-exercise Recovery in Patients With Addison's Disease

Brief Summary: Exposure to stress alters the activity of the adrenomedullary, adrenocortical and sympathetic nervous system, depending on the type and intensity of the stressor. Physical exercise represents a stress condition influencing many systems in the body. Given a workload of at least 70-85% of Vo2max, exercise is a potent stimulus of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis. The increased endogenous cortisol secretion results in important metabolic and cardiovascular effects to maintain cellular and organ homeostasis. Patients with Addison's disease are not able to meet the increased demand of adrenal steroids in case of physical exercise, which may result in an impaired exercise capacity and a prolonged post-exercise recovery. We hypothesize that a hydrocortisone stress dose increases exercise capacity and improves post-exercise recovery in patients with Addison's disease.