Everything you need to know about adrenaline

Adrenaline, also known as epinephrine, is a hormone and drug used primarily in the emergency treatment of life-threatening allergic reactions.

Adrenaline is secreted by the adrenal glands. It plays a key role in the body’s acute (short-term) stress response by triggering the sympathetic nervous system (SNS).

The SNS affects many organs and controls the body’s fight-or-flight response. In a stressful situation, adrenaline is quickly released into the bloodstream within minutes. This release sends impulses to the organs, prompting them to create a specific stress response.

People may need to take adrenaline if they experience a serious or life-threatening allergic reaction or if their adrenaline levels are out of balance.

Adrenaline acts as a hormone in the body in many ways. For example, it:

• Stimulates the SNS to control the body’s fight-or-flight response to physical stress and threats
• Increases smooth muscle contraction of the vascular system (vessels that carry lymph fluid and blood throughout the body)
• Stimulates contraction of the pupillary dilator muscle in the eye, which widens the pupil to allow more light to enter the eye.
• It causes intestinal muscles to contract to open and close body passages, including the opening of the anus and the sphincter pylori (the ring of muscle that connects the stomach and small intestine).
• Increases the heart rate and allows the heart muscle to contract

Normal adrenaline levels are 0-140 picograms per milliliter (pg/mL), or 764.3 picomoles per liter (pmol/L).

Factors that affect adrenaline levels include how the body reacts to stress or perceived danger and certain medical conditions.

Adrenaline levels can be measured with a blood or urine test. A healthcare provider such as a primary care provider (PCP) or endocrinologist (a doctor who specializes in treating hormone-related conditions) will order a catecholamine test if they suspect your symptoms may indicate low or high adrenaline levels.

A catecholamine test can determine levels of adrenaline and other catecholamines (hormones produced by the adrenal glands) and can screen for or rule out certain types of rare cancers.

Low adrenaline levels

Low adrenaline levels are anything below 764.3 pmol/L. Low adrenaline is rare, but when it does occur, it limits the body’s ability to respond normally to stress and stressful situations.

High adrenaline levels

A high level of adrenaline is anything above 764.3 pmol/L. Factors that can increase adrenaline include:

• Certain medical conditions
• Caffeine
• Chronic (long-term) stress
• Intense exercise
• liquor
• smoking

High adrenaline may indicate rare tumors or cancerous (non-cancerous) tumors pheochromocytomaAdrenal gland tumor.

Symptoms of high adrenaline include:

If adrenaline levels are too high, treatment depends on the cause. For example, if a tumor is the cause, the health care provider will treat or surgically remove the tumor. If the treatment is successful, the adrenaline level should return to normal.

Adrenaline is part of a class of drugs called alpha- and beta-adrenergic agonists (sympathomimetic agents), which work by relaxing airway muscles and constricting blood vessels.

Adrenaline can help:

• Treat life-threatening allergies to insects, drugs, latex, food and other allergy triggers
• Treat life-threatening hypertension (low blood pressure) from septic shock, a life-threatening immune response to infection
• Restore heart rhythm in cardiac arrest (sudden loss of heart function) in people on advanced cardiovascular life support (ACLS).
• Neonatal resuscitation
• Treat open-angle glaucoma, a chronic eye disease that damages the eye’s optic nerve
• Relieve symptoms of asthma, a lung condition where the airways narrow and make breathing difficult

How to get adrenaline

Adrenaline is available as a prefilled shot that can be injected under the skin or into a muscle to treat life-threatening allergic reactions. It should be used at the first sign of a serious allergic reaction. Your healthcare provider can show you how to use it and how to inject.

Always use adrenaline exactly as prescribed, and never inject more or less than prescribed by your provider. After you inject adrenaline, you should seek emergency medical attention.

In some cases, the injection must be given intravenously (into a vein) by a healthcare provider.

Safety

Adrenaline should not be administered to people with hypersensitivity to sympathomimetic drugs used to treat conditions such as glaucoma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Before taking adrenaline, talk to your healthcare provider about your health conditions and medications you are taking to avoid potential interactions. Adrenaline may interact with Benadryl (diphenhydramine) and Chlor-Trimeton (chlorpheniramine), antihistamines that relieve allergy and cold symptoms.

Be careful if you have chest pain, high blood pressure, irregular heartbeat, heart disease, diabetes, hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid), depression, asthma, or Parkinson’s disease.

People who are pregnant, breastfeeding, or planning to become pregnant should talk to their healthcare provider before taking adrenaline. There is insufficient scientific evidence on the effects of adrenaline in pregnant people, so adrenaline should only be used if the potential benefits outweigh the potential risks.

Adrenaline has many side effects, which is why it’s important to talk to your healthcare provider before taking it.

for example:

• In people with hyperthyroidism, possible side effects include anxiety, headaches, and palpitations.
• Repeated injections of adrenaline can cause narrowing of blood vessels, which can cause necrosis (death of body tissue).
• Other side effects may include skin redness, difficulty breathing, weakness, dizziness, tremors, sweating, nausea, and vomiting.
• Rare but serious side effects include cerebral hemorrhage (bleeding of brain tissue).

Studies show that adrenaline naturally increases through activities such as intense exercise, extreme sports and watching scary movies.

These activities cause an adrenaline rush that increases blood flow to the muscles and brain, relaxes muscles, and helps the liver convert glycogen into glucose (sugar).

Adrenaline is a hormone and drug with many functions and uses. It is released by the body’s adrenal glands and triggers the sympathetic nervous system (SNS), which controls the body’s natural fight-or-flight response to physical stress and danger.

People can take adrenaline as a medicine to treat life-threatening allergic reactions or to treat low blood pressure from septic shock, among other health conditions.

Adrenaline has many side effects, including weakness, tremors, anxiety, and flushing of the skin. Always talk to a health care provider before taking it. A provider can monitor usage and address any possible side effects.