Cortisol, urine

• On day 1, urinate into the toilet upon arising in the morning.
• Collect all subsequent urine (in a special container) for the next 24-hours.
• On day 2, urinate into the container in the morning upon arising.
• Cap the container. Keep it in the refrigerator or a cool place during the collection period. Label the container with your name, the date, the time of completion, and return it as instructed.

Infant:
Thoroughly wash the area around the urethra. Open a urine collection bag (a plastic bag with an adhesive paper on one end), and place it on your infant. For males, the entire penis can be placed in the bag and the adhesive attached to the skin. For females, the bag is placed over the labia. Place a diaper over the infant (bag and all). The infant should be checked frequently and the bag changed after the infant has urinated into the bag. For active infants, this procedure may take a couple of attempts--lively infants can displace the bag, causing an inability to obtain the specimen. The urine is drained into the container for transport to the laboratory.

Deliver it to the laboratory or your health care provider as soon as possible upon completion.

How to Prepare:
No special preparation is necessary for this test, but if the collection is being taken from an infant, a couple of extra collection bags may be necessary.

Inform the health care provider of any medications that may affect this test (see "Special considerations").

How it Feels:
The test involves only normal urination, and there is no discomfort.

Risks:
There are no risks.

Why this Test is Performed:
The test is used to evaluate adrenocortical function.

Normal Values:
The normal range is 10 to 100 mcg/24 h.

Note: mcg/24 h = micrograms per 24-hours

Abnormal Results:
Increased levels of urine cortisol may indicate:

• ACTH-secreting tumor
• Cushing's syndrome
• pituitary tumor

Decreased levels of urine cortisol may indicate:

• Addison's disease
• hypopituitarism
• congenital adrenal hyperplasia

Additional conditions under which the test may be performed:

• Cushing's syndrome caused by adrenal tumor
• pregnancy (increases urinary cortisol)

Cost:
The estimated cost is $42.

Special Considerations:
Interfering factors:

• severe emotional or physical stress
• drugs that can affect test measurements include oral contraceptives and spironolactone

This is an illustration of the female urinary tract. The female and male urinary tracts are relatively the same except for the length of the urethra. The positioning in the body and relative size of the organs are also demonstrated.