Surgery of the suprarenal gland

Abstract

The first anatomical report of the adrenal glands comes from Eustachius in 1563. The anatomical division in two zones, an outer cortex and an inner medulla, came in 1805 by Cuvier [1]. Other prominent scientists that have contributed to the understanding of the role and function of the adrenal glands are Thomas Addison who described the features of adrenal insufficiency, Harvey Cushing who in 1932 reported 11 patients with the characteristic features of the syndrome that today bears his name, and Conn who in 1955 described the syndrome resulting from excessive secretion of this mineralocorticoid [2].