Also called: Hypercortisolism
Important: This page is general information, not medical advice. It does not recommend or prescribe any treatment. Always consult your doctor or pharmacist before starting, stopping or changing any medicine.
About Cushing's Syndrome
Cushing's syndrome is a hormonal disorder. The cause is long-term exposure to too much cortisol, a hormone that your adrenal gland makes. Sometimes, taking synthetic hormone medicine to treat an inflammatory disease leads to Cushing's. Some kinds of tumors produce a hormone that can cause your body to make too much cortisol.
Cushing's syndrome is rare. Some symptoms are:
- Upper body obesity
- Thin arms and legs
- Severe fatigue and muscle weakness
- High blood pressure
- High blood sugar
- Easy bruising
Lab tests can show if you have it and find the cause. Your treatment will depend on why you have too much cortisol. If it is because you have been taking synthetic hormones, a lower dose may control your symptoms. If the cause is a tumor, surgery and other therapies may be needed.
It sits within Endocrine System.
The lead U.S. institute for this subject is the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.
When to speak to someone. Reading about a topic cannot tell you whether it applies to you. Speak to a doctor or pharmacist if symptoms are severe, sudden, getting worse, or simply not going away — and seek emergency care immediately for chest pain, breathing difficulty, sudden weakness or confusion, or a serious allergic reaction.
Research on Cushing's Syndrome
148 studies areregistered for this condition on ClinicalTrials.gov, the U.S. National Library of Medicine's public registry. A selection is below — the links go straight to the registry entry, not to a summary of ours.
What a registered study does and does not mean. Registration means a study exists and has been declared publicly. It says nothing about whether the treatment being tested works, is safe, or is available to you. Many studies find no benefit — that is what research is for. Never seek out an experimental treatment on the strength of a registry entry alone.
Research currently under way
- Salivary Cortisol and Hypercortisolism in Type 2 DiabetesShanghai 6th People's Hospital
- EndoSense: Continuous Real-Time Monitoring of Health Markers in Endocrine and Metabolic DisordersFelix Beuschlein
- Myokines as Potential Biomarkers and Drivers of Sarcopenia in Metabolic and Endocrine DiseasesCliniques universitaires Saint-Luc- Université Catholique de Louvain
- NAC- NAFLD And CushingUniversity Hospital, Angers
- Evaluation of Adults With Endocrine and Metabolic-Related ConditionsNational Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)
- Prospective Evaluation of 68Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT, Octreotide and F-DOPA PET Imaging in Ectopic Cushing SyndromeNational Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)
Research already completed
- Study of Adrenal Gland TumorsEunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
- Defining the Genetic Basis for the Development of Primary Pigmented Nodular Adrenocortical Disease (PPNAD) and the Carney ComplexEunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
- In Vivo Study of Interactions Between the Endocannabinoid System and the Corticotropic Axis in ManUniversity Hospital, Bordeaux
Study data from ClinicalTrials.gov, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Retrieved 2026-07-30. Registry entries are supplied by study sponsors and investigators; ClinicalTrials.gov does not verify their scientific validity. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH.
Where to read more
Rather than paraphrase, we point you to the primary sources. Every link below is to a government health agency, a national institute or a recognised medical body — grouped by what you are trying to find out.
Start Here
- Cushing SyndromeMerck & Co., Inc.
- Cushing's SyndromeNational Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
Symptoms
- What Are the Symptoms of Cushing's Syndrome?Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Diagnosis and Tests
- Adrenocorticotropic Hormone (ACTH)National Library of Medicine
- Cortisol TestNational Library of Medicine
- How Do Health Care Providers Diagnose Cushing's Syndrome?Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Treatments and Therapies
- Is There a Cure for Cushing's Syndrome?Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
- What Are the Treatments for Cushing's Syndrome?Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Related Issues
- Other Cushing's Syndrome FAQsEunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Genetics
- Cushing disease: MedlinePlus GeneticsNational Library of Medicine
Clinical Trials
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Cushing SyndromeNational Institutes of Health
Medical subject headings
Clinicians and researchers index this subject under Cushing Syndrome. These are the terms to use when searching medical literature.
This page is built from the MedlinePlus health topic record for Cushing's Syndrome, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health. Information is from MedlinePlus.gov. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and is not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH. Retrieved 30 July 2026.