EXCRETION OF GLUCOCORTICOIDS IN THE NEWBORN1

Abstract
The adrenal gland of the newborn infant differs greatly from that of the adult person. At birth the adrenals are relatively large structures and the cortex is composed of an outer or true cortical part and an inner part, the fetal cortex. This fetal cortex grows rapidly during the last trimester of fetal life and at birth or just previous to birth begins to degenerate. According to Benner (1940) this process is slow for the first 3 days of life but after that time proceeds rapidly for 2 to 3 weeks. This phenomenon was first observed by Scheel in 1908 and although numerous investigations have been carried out since that time, the function of the fetal cortex and the significance of its rapid involution are still not understood. Grollman (1936) and Broster (1937) have suggested that this zone might be androgenic tissue,