People born with the common form of congenital adrenal hyperplasia lack an enzyme in the adrenal glands needed to make the hormones cortisol and aldorsterone, which are involved in the body’s response to stress and blood pressure regulation. Children with this rare condition reroute hormone production to excess androgens, which tend to make them mature early and suffer from short stature and infertility as adults. Richard Auchus, M.D., Ph.D., of the U-M Medical School Department of Pharmacology and internal medicine and investigators from the CAHtalyst Adult Trial discusses the evidence found to support restructuring treatments for these patients.
