Catecholamines - urine

Alternative names:

adrenalin-urine test; dopamine-urine test; epinephrine-urine test; homovanillic acid (HVA); HVA; metanephrine; norepinephrine-urine test; normetanephrine; urine catecholamines; urine metanephrine; vanillylmandelic acid (VMA); VMA

Normal values:

• VMA: 2 to 7 mg/24-hours
• epinephrine: 0.5 to 20 mcg/24-hours
• norepinephrine: 15 to 80 mcg/24-hours
• dopamine: 65 to 400 mcg/24-hours
• metanephrine: 24 to 96 mcg/24-hours (some laboratories give the range as 140 to 785 mcg/24-hours)
• normetanephrine: 75 to 375 mcg/24-hours
• total urine catecholamines: 14 to 110 mcg/24-hours

Note: mg/hour = milligrams per hour; mcg/hour = micrograms per hour

What abnormal results mean:

Elevated levels of urinary catecholamines may indicate:

• acute anxiety
• ganglioblastoma (very rare)
• ganglioneuroma (very rare)
• neuroblastoma (rare)
• pheochromocytoma (rare)
• severe stress

Additional conditions under which the test may be performed:

• multiple endocrine neoplasia (MEN) II