hormone Archives - Resource Library - Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation Trust

What is a pituitary function test? This is a blood test to see if the pituitary gland, a small gland that releases hormones in the front of your brain, is working properly. We test the pituitary gland to see if your child is growing and developing appropriately. The test involves giving your child a...

There are different types of progesterone-only pill (also known as mini pill or POP) such as Cerazette, Cerelle, Norgeston, Noriday, Micronor. How does it work? The progesterone-only pill contains only progesterone (1 of the 2 female hormones). It works by making the mucus (discharge) produced by...

Patches and pills are different ways to give the body the female hormone oestrogen. Oestrogen is responsible for physical development and is really important for your overall health. Your doctor has recommended that you need oestrogen. You can take oestrogen by pill or by sticking a patch to your...

What is a synacthen test? A synacthen test (sometimes known as the short synacthen test) checks whether your pituitary gland (a tiny bit inside your brain) and adrenal glands (triangular body parts above your kidneys) are working properly. Cortisol is the stress hormone that is released by the...

What is a water deprivation test? A water deprivation test lets us see how concentrated your urine becomes when you do not drink anything. This test lets us see if you have diabetes insipidus. The test may take all day and some children need to stay overnight. It depends on how quickly your urine...

This resource explains the potential side effects your child could experience as a result of taking anti-thyroid medication (Carbimazole). If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the endocrinology team. Your child’s consultant is: Carbimazole This is an anti-thyroid drug, taken...

What is a CRH? Corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH) tells the brain to release the adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH). ACTH tells the kidneys to make cortisol which is your body’s stress hormone. Your doctor thinks you are making too much of this stress hormone (cortisol) so we are doing a...

What is a oral glucose tolerance test? An oral glucose tolerance test is a test to see how your child’s body reacts after you have a sugary drink. We will then take a few blood tests every 30 minutes, for 2 hours to check the levels of insulin and glucose in your child’s blood. How…...

What is a hCG test? A human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) stimulation test lets us to measure the amount of sex hormones being produced in the body. This is often used when looking at possible hormone problems in puberty or differences in sex development. It can also be used to check whether the...

What is an IGF-1 generation test? An ‘insulin-like growth factor-1’ (IGF-1) is made by your body when growth hormone is released. Growth hormone is produced by the pituitary gland, a small gland in your brain. Growth hormone is an important hormone for growth, but it also works by...

What is a growth hormone suppression test? A growth hormone suppression test can be used to see if your pituitary gland ( a part of your brain) is making too much growth hormone. How does the test work? To test this, we will give you a sugary drink to stop the production of growth hormone…...

What is a LHRH test? A luteinising hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) test sees how well the pituitary gland (a tiny bit inside the brain) regulates the level of sex hormones in the body. It also helps regulate the amount of hormones produced by other glands in the body. How does the test work? In...