• Magdalena Szychlińska, Angelika Baranowska-Jurkun, Wojciech Matuszewski, Katarzyna Wołos-Kłosowicz, and Elżbieta Bandurska-Stankiewicz.
• Clinic of Endocrinology, Diabetology and Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, Collegium Medicum, University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, 10-900 Olsztyn, Poland.
• Medicina (Kaunas). 2020 Feb 10; 56 (2).

AbstractDue to the growing availability of imaging examinations the percentage of patients with incidentally diagnosed adrenal tumors has increased. The vast majority of these lesions are benign, non-functioning adenomas, although according to various estimates even up to 30%-50% of patients with adrenal incidentaloma may present biochemical hypercortisolemia, without typical clinical features of Cushing's syndrome. Adrenal adenomas secreting small amounts of glucocorticoids may cause morphological and functional changes in the myocardium and blood vessels. Early stages of cardiovascular remodeling may be observed among asymptomatic patients with adrenal adenoma. Vascular changes precede the development of cardiovascular diseases and can increase morbidity and mortality in patients with adrenal incidentaloma. This risk may result not only from the traditional risk factors. Seemingly hormonally inactive adrenal tumors can indeed produce small amounts of glucocorticoids that have metabolic implications. Therefore, evaluation of patients with incidental adrenal findings presenting with subclinical cardiovascular disease seems of particular importance.

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