Critical illness causes the body to initiate a stress response, which activates the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis to increase the availability of the stress hormone cortisol. In a new Comprehensive Physiology article, experts give an overview of the adrenocortical stress response, with a point-by-point discussion on the causes and consequences observed during critical illness.
They also discuss potential failure or dysfunction of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis and current diagnostic and therapeutic options.
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About Journal
Comprehensive Physiology is the most authoritative and comprehensive collection of physiology information ever assembled, and uses the most powerful features of review journals and electronic reference works to cover the latest key developments in the field, through the most authoritative articles on the subjects covered.