Role of noninvasive examinations in the management of ischemic heart disease.IV. Nuclear cardiology in chronic ischemic heart disease

We evaluated the circadian rhythms in the plasma concentrations of cortisol, cortisone and their free forms, and in the cortisone/cortisol ratios by means of reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography in normal adult subjects. Plasma concentrations of cortisone, as well as cortisol, exhibited a circadian rhythm. The ratios of cortisone/cortisol remained almost constant during the waking hours of normal subjects. Changes in the cortisone/cortisol ratios previously reported in patients with various diseases exceeded the diurnal changes detected in the present study. Thus, the determination of the cortisone/cortisol ratio provides information that is useful in assessing the adrenal function of patients with various diseases.