Studies on the combined use of measurements of sweat electrolyte composition and rate of sweating as an index of adrenal cortical activity.

Abstract

that the concentration of chloride or sodium in thermal sweat can be used as an index of that function of the adrenal cortex concerned primarily with electrolyte metabolism, studies concerning the factors which are related to or influence the electrolytic composition of sweat have gained greatly in significance. In the past, several investigators have obtained data which suggested that the concentration of chloride in sweat is positively correlated with the rate of sweating (3, 4) and skin temperature (5). However, the relations of these variables to sweat electrolyte composition have never been defined with precision nor have they been studied in connection with the effect of adrenal cortical activity on the composition of sweat. The present paper is concerned initially with studies which show that certain non-endocrine factors play a major role in the determination of sweat electrolyte composition. A method for taking these factors into consideration in the utilization of sweat electrolyte measurements as an index of hormonal activity is described. Finally investigations of adrenal cortical function based on this newly developed index are presented.