Hormones are chemical messengers you produce to regulate different functions of your body. Having too much or too little of certain hormones (hormone imbalance) can impact your wellbeing. The nationally renowned experts at Cedars-Sinai offer hope for healing with hormone testing, which helps evaluate the hormone imbalance. You have access to a broad range of tests, including options that are not widely available. Our diagnostic capabilities enable you to receive the therapies that are best for your needs.
Hormone levels change as you age—some change throughout the day. We use hormone testing to detect and evaluate hormone imbalances that may be making you sick. We often conduct hormone testing using a blood sample, but some tests require urine or saliva samples.
We frequently test levels of:-
Estrogen and testosterone
Adrenal gland hormones, such as cortisol
Thyroid hormones, such as thyroxine
Growth hormone, prolactin and other pituitary gland hormones
We use tests called stimulation and suppression tests to evaluate a hormone imbalance. We give you hormones and other substances that either start (stimulate) or stop (suppress) your production of certain hormones. We then evaluate how your body responds.
Common types of stimulation and suppression testing include:
Growth hormone response to glucagon: We inject a hormone, glucagon, into muscle tissue and measure growth hormone levels over four hours. This test helps us confirm or rule out adult growth hormone deficiency.
Cortisol response to cosyntropin: We give you cosyntropin, which acts like ACTH (adrenocorticotropic hormone). ACTH is a hormone produced in the pituitary gland that stimulates the adrenal glands to produce cortisol. We measure cortisol levels every 30 minutes for one hour. This test helps us confirm adrenal insufficiency.
Glucose tolerance test: We give you a sweet drink, which should lower levels of growth hormone. We measure levels of growth hormone in the blood every two hours. This test helps us confirm acromegaly.
Cortisol response to dexamethasone:: You take a pill (dexamethasone tablet) at night that should block cortisol production. The next day we take a blood sample to measure cortisol levels. This test helps us confirm or rule out Cushing's syndrome.
Metyrapone suppression test: You take a pill (metyrapone tablet) at night that should block cortisol production. The next day we take a blood sample to measure cortisol and ACTH levels. This test helps us confirm or rule out adrenal insufficiency.
We explain the tests you need and answer any questions you may have.
Here's what to expect: