Medical case narrative
A 28-year-old woman — Addison's disease wearing a psychiatric mask
What happened
A 28-year-old woman presented with psychiatric symptoms that were eventually traced to Addison's disease — adrenal failure, in which the body cannot make enough cortisol.
What it looked like
A psychiatric presentation in a young woman, in a condition whose early signs are famously easy to file under stress or depression.
What the labs found
Adrenal insufficiency on hormonal testing, with a markedly elevated ACTH. One caution: the paper prints the ACTH unit as "pmol/mL," which appears to be a typographical unit error — this entry relies on the diagnosis and the pattern, not on quoting that unit.
What changed
A hormone diagnosis with life-sustaining replacement treatment, found because someone tested the endocrine system behind the psychiatric picture.
The test that told the story
Morning cortisol and ACTH (adrenal function testing).
Sources: Published case report.