抄録
Forty cases of outer adrenal cortical cysts were observed in approximately 300 newborn and infant autopsies. The cases were divided into three groups, A, B and C. Group A consisted of 19 cases showing pulmonary atelectasis and or hemorrhage of the central nervous system. Group B consisted of 15 cases of various kinds of malformation including four cases of anencephalus. Group C consisted of 6 cases showing some kinds of damage to the central nervous system and a case of congenital necrotic peritonitis. The cycts were produced by retrogressive lesion due to the hormonal imbalance of placenta and pituitary which occurred in the individual adrenal glands. This is often seen physiologically in the baby between 1500 to 2500g and 3500 to 4000g body weight, and the cyst is thought to have the highest incidence among cases with pathological damage to the central nervous system. The origin of the cyst is probably hyperfunction of the outermost layer of the adrenal cortex and hypofunction of the inner layer of the adrenal cortex. Some of the cysts were probably produced from preexisting adrenal hemorrhage. Increase of the adrenal weight is related to the thickened x-zone, and a heavy adrenal gland does not mean that hyperfunction exists. The adrenal cortical nodules are seen frequently among cases with malformation. Finally, a case of adrenal rest tumor in the testis was found in each of the three groups, and all of them showed outer adrenal cortical cysts in their adrenal glands.
