[A review of ten cases of aldosteronoma. Diagnostic and therapeutic conclusions (author's transl)].

Ten patients with primary hyperaldosteronism resulting from a functioning adrenocortical adenoma were studied. The high incidence of hypertension and/or renal disease in the families of these patients suggests that hereditary factors play a part in the genesis of aldosteronomas. In patients with hypertension and hypokalemia the diagnosis of primary hyperaldosteronism is established by measurements of serum renin activity and serum aldosterone concentrations under normal conditions and during pharmacodynamic tests. The adenoma is demonstrated by radioactive iodocholesterol scintigraphy and computerized tomography. In nearly two-thirds of the patients, unilateral adrenalectomy is followed by complete definitive recovery.