{"id":"dhea","name":"DHEA (Dehydroepiandrosterone, Unconjugated)","shortName":"DHEA","aliases":["DHEA, Unconjugated","DHEA","Dehydroepiandrosterone","DHEA, LC/MS/MS","Dehydroepiandrosterone, Free","DHEA, Serum","DHEA (Dehydroepiandrosterone), Unconjugated","DHEA, (Dehydroepiandrosterone), Unconjugated","Unconjugated DHEA","Dehydroepiandrosterone, Serum or Plasma","Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), Serum","Dehydroepiandrosterone by TMS","Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), HPLC-MS/MS"],"abbreviations":["DHEA"],"loinc":[{"code":"2193-1","primary":true},{"code":"2196-4","primary":false},{"code":"15054-0","primary":false}],"specimen":"serum","units":[{"ucum":"ng/dL","display":"ng/dL"},{"ucum":"nmol/L","display":"nmol/L"},{"ucum":"ng/mL","display":"ng/mL"}],"referenceRanges":[{"population":"20–50","low":31,"high":701,"unit":"ng/dL","unitDisplay":"ng/dL","note":"Labcorp prints one interval for men and women (LC-MS/MS). Other labs differ a lot. Quest prints 147 to 1,760 ng/dL for adult men, 385 to 1,143 ng/dL for women in the mid-follicular phase (345 to 2,030 at the mid-cycle surge and 414 to 1,295 in the mid-luteal phase), and 77 to 851 ng/dL after menopause. ARUP prints 133 to 778 ng/dL (1.33 to 7.78 ng/mL) for ages 18 to 39 and 63 to 470 ng/dL (0.63 to 4.70 ng/mL) from age 40, for both sexes, and 60 to 573 ng/dL for women after menopause. Mayo prints upper limits only, such as below 1,300 ng/dL (13 ng/mL) at 19 to 30 years and below 1,000 ng/dL at 31 to 40. The Labcorp Endocrine Sciences table puts the break between the two adult bands at age 50 (20 to 49, then 50 and over). Use the range on your own report.","sources":[{"title":"Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) (test 004100)","url":"https://www.labcorp.com/tests/004100/dehydroepiandrosterone-dhea","publisher":"Labcorp"},{"title":"Endocrinology Expected Values and S.I. Unit Conversion Tables (DHEA, HPLC-MS/MS, test 500156)","url":"https://specialtytesting.labcorp.com/sites/default/files/2021-07/L5167-0421-18%20Endocrine%20Expected%20Values_0.pdf","publisher":"Labcorp (Endocrine Sciences)"},{"title":"DHEA, (Dehydroepiandrosterone), Unconjugated (test code 19894)","url":"https://testdirectory.questdiagnostics.com/test/test-detail/19894/?cc=MASTER","publisher":"Quest Diagnostics"},{"title":"Dehydroepiandrosterone, Serum or Plasma (ARUP test 2001640)","url":"https://ltd.aruplab.com/Tests/Pub/2001640","publisher":"ARUP Laboratories"},{"title":"DHEA_: Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), Serum","url":"https://www.mayocliniclabs.com/test-catalog/overview/81405","publisher":"Mayo Clinic Laboratories"}]},{"population":"51+","low":21,"high":402,"unit":"ng/dL","unitDisplay":"ng/dL","note":"Labcorp interval (LC-MS/MS), the same for men and women. For comparison, ARUP prints 63 to 470 ng/dL (0.63 to 4.70 ng/mL) from age 40 for both sexes, and 60 to 573 ng/dL for women after menopause. Mayo prints upper limits of below 800 ng/dL at 41 to 50 years, below 600 at 51 to 60 and below 500 from age 61. Quest prints 77 to 851 ng/dL for women after menopause and 147 to 1,760 ng/dL for adult men, with no further age split. DHEA falls steadily with age, to only 10 to 20% of young-adult levels in the oldest people (Endotext). It also follows a daily rhythm and has a short half-life, about 30 minutes, so compare results drawn at the same time of day. Use the range on your own report.","sources":[{"title":"Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) (test 004100)","url":"https://www.labcorp.com/tests/004100/dehydroepiandrosterone-dhea","publisher":"Labcorp"},{"title":"Endocrinology Expected Values and S.I. Unit Conversion Tables (DHEA, HPLC-MS/MS, test 500156)","url":"https://specialtytesting.labcorp.com/sites/default/files/2021-07/L5167-0421-18%20Endocrine%20Expected%20Values_0.pdf","publisher":"Labcorp (Endocrine Sciences)"},{"title":"DHEA, (Dehydroepiandrosterone), Unconjugated (test code 19894)","url":"https://testdirectory.questdiagnostics.com/test/test-detail/19894/?cc=MASTER","publisher":"Quest Diagnostics"},{"title":"Dehydroepiandrosterone, Serum or Plasma (ARUP test 2001640)","url":"https://ltd.aruplab.com/Tests/Pub/2001640","publisher":"ARUP Laboratories"},{"title":"DHEA_: Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), Serum","url":"https://www.mayocliniclabs.com/test-catalog/overview/81405","publisher":"Mayo Clinic Laboratories"},{"title":"Adrenal Androgens and Aging","url":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK279006/","publisher":"Endotext (NCBI Bookshelf)"},{"title":"DHEA as a Biomarker of Stress: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis","url":"https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8290065/","publisher":"Frontiers in Psychiatry","year":2021}]}],"review":{"status":"ai-verified","label":"AI-verified against cited sources. Awaiting expert review","lastReviewed":"2026-10-03"},"summary":"A hormone made mostly by the adrenal glands that the body uses as a building block for sex hormones. It differs from DHEA-S, and levels fall steadily with age.","url":"https://bloodtesttracker.com/markers/dhea","notice":"Information, not medical advice. Ranges differ between labs, so the range on your own report is the one your result is judged against."}