肾上腺素和去甲肾上腺素是两个神经递质，它们也充当激素，它们属于一种称为儿茶酚胺的化合物。

As hormones, they influence different parts of your body and stimulate your central nervous system. Having too much or too little of either can have noticeable effects on your health.

Chemically, epinephrine and norepinephrine are very similar. Both epinephrine and norepinephrine work on alpha and beta receptors. However, epinephrine has a greater effect on beta receptors compared with norepinephrine.

α受体仅在动脉中发现。β受体在骨骼肌的心脏，肺和动脉中。正是这种区别使肾上腺素和去甲肾上腺素具有略有不同的功能。

肾上腺素

肾上腺素，也称为肾上腺素，对身体具有强大的作用。这些包括：

  • increased blood sugar levels
  • 心率提高
  • increased contractility (how hard the heart squeezes)
  • relaxation of smooth muscle in the airways to improve breathing

这些效果旨在为您的身体提供额外的能量。当您感到非常压力或恐惧时，您的身体会释放出大量的肾上腺素。这被称为战斗或飞行的响应，或adrenaline rush。

去甲肾上腺素

去甲肾上腺素，也称为去甲肾上腺素，具有类似于肾上腺素的作用，例如：

  • increased blood sugar levels
  • 心率提高
  • increased contractility

去甲肾上腺素也会导致血管变窄，从而增加血压。

主要区别

肾上腺素和去甲肾上腺素都会影响您的心脏，血糖水平和血管。但是，去甲肾上腺素也会使血管变窄，增加血压。

肾上腺素

除了是激素和神经递质外，肾上腺素还以其合成形式用作医疗。

它的主要用途涉及处理过敏反应。This is a severe allergic reaction that can affect a person’s breathing. An injection of epinephrine can help open up your airway so you can breathe.

Other uses of epinephrine include:

  • 哮喘发作。吸入的肾上腺素形式可以帮助治疗或预防严重asthma attacks。
  • 心脏骤停。如果您的心脏停止抽水，肾上腺素的注射可能会重启您的心脏（心脏骤停).
  • 感染。If you have a severe infection and aren’t producing enough catecholamines, you may need to be given epinephrine through an intravenous line (IV).
  • 麻醉。将肾上腺素添加到local anesthetics可以使它们持续更长的时间。

去甲肾上腺素

医疗保健专业人员有时会使用去甲肾上腺素来治疗septic shock, a severe infection that can lead to organ failure. This infection tends to cause dangerouslylow blood pressure。通过静脉注射给出的去甲肾上腺素可以帮助收缩血管，从而增加血压。

Although epinephrine can also be used for this purpose, norepinephrine is preferred due to its pure alpha receptor action.

有些人注意缺陷多动障碍（ADHD）或者沮丧服用刺激或增加去甲肾上腺素释放的药物，包括：

主要区别

肾上腺素is used to treat:

  • 过敏反应
  • 心脏骤停
  • 严重的哮喘发作

去甲肾上腺素, on the other hand, is used to treat dangerously low blood pressure. In addition, medications that increase norepinephrine can help with ADHD and depression.

低水平的肾上腺素和去甲肾上腺素会导致各种身体和精神状况，包括：

Some factors can make you less sensitive to epinephrine and norepinephrine, including:

这些因素也会导致您的身体开始产生较少的肾上腺素和去甲肾上腺素。

Having too much adrenaline or norepinephrine can cause:

Some medical conditions cause people to have too much epinephrine, norepinephrine, or both. These include:

  • pheochromocytoma，在肾上腺中形成的肿瘤
  • paraganglioma，一种在肾上腺外部形成的肿瘤
  • 肥胖

持续的压力还可能引起高水平的肾上腺素和去甲肾上腺素。

肾上腺素和norepinephrine are very similar neurotransmitters and hormones.

While epinephrine has slightly more of an effect on your heart, norepinephrine has more of an effect on your blood vessels. Both play a role in your body’s natural fight-or-flight response to stress and have important medical uses as well.