Special Precautions/Comments:

Some medications can cause interference including monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs), vasodilators, alpha and beta blockers, methyl-dopa, L-DOPA, clonidine and adrenergic neurone blockers. Ideally, these medications should be stopped prior to sampling. If not possible, patients should be retested after stopping these medications in the case of a borderline result. 

Additional Information:

Catecholamines, such as adrenaline and noradrenaline, are produced by the adrenal gland and play a role in the body’s ‘fight-or-flight’ response by regulating blood pressure, glycaemic control and emotional responses. 

Catecholamine-secreting tumours, such as phaeochromocytoma or paraganglioma, are associated with symptoms such as severe hypertension, headaches, forceful heartbeat and anxiety. These can be investigated by measuring urinary metadrenalines, including metadrenaline (MA) and normetadrenaline (NMA), which are the metabolised form of catecholamines and are much more stable. A 24 hour urine collection is recommended for metadrenaline measurement because catecholamines may be secreted an episodic manner which may be missed by a random urine.