The condition is usually the result of a problem with the immune system, which causes it to attack the outer layer of the adrenal gland (the adrenal cortex), disrupting the production of steroid hormones aldosterone and cortisol. Other potential causes include conditions that can damage the adrenal glands, such as tuberculosis. Dehydration can also be an early sign of Addison’s disease. It’s caused by lack of the hormone aldosterone in your body, which is used to regulate the balance of salt and water. Other possible causes of Addison’s disease include: infections – such as those linked to AIDS, or fungal infections; a haemorrhage – very heavy bleeding into the adrenal glands, sometimes associated with meningitis or other types of severe sepsis; cancer – if cancer cells from elsewhere in your body spread to your adrenal glands; amyloidosis – a disease where amyloid, a protein produced by your bone marrow cells, builds up in your adrenal glands and damages them; surgical removal of both adrenal glands (adrenalectomy) – for example, to remove a tumour; adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) – a rare, life-limiting, inherited condition affecting the adrenal glands and nerve cells in the brain that most often affects young boys and certain treatments needed for Cushing’s syndrome – a collection of symptoms caused by very high levels of cortisol in the body.
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