Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Acromegaly is a rare condition characterised primarily by tumourous production of excess Growth Hormone (GH) from a pituitary adenoma. The Octreotide Challenge Test (OCT) has been used in the RVI to predict short term efficacy of long-acting Somatostatin Analogue (SSA) therapy.Aims: We retrospectively reviewed the OCT results of all patients with acromegaly treated at RVI from 2005 to 2021 to evaluate its clinical utility.<p class="abstex...

Background: Acromegaly is a rare condition characterised primarily by tumourous production of excess Growth Hormone (GH) from a pituitary adenoma. Clinical management aims at normalising serum IGF1 levels within sex and age-adjusted reference parameters. Treatment options include pituitary surgery, medical therapy with somatostatin analogue (SSA), cabergoline, pegvisomant or radiotherapy. A combination of treatment modalities is common for the majority of patients.<p class...

A 65 year-old male was evaluated at another hospital for frequent episodes of fainting preceded by sweating, palpitations fatigue and hunger over several years. There was no personal or family history of diabetes mellitus. Hypoglycaemia was confirmed on a supervised fast and, guided by some equivocal uptake on a dotatate scan, he underwent a distal pancreatectomy, but the symptoms persisted. He was referred to our centre. He reported relentless weight gain and a need to eat po...

Introduction: Hyperprolactinaemia, amenorrhoea with ophthalmoplegia and radiological abnormalities in suprasellar region usually suggest a pituitary tumour. We present a case of carotico-cavernous sinus fistula causing pituitary engorgement (CCF) mimicking pituitary tumour.Case history: 45 year old female with background history of long term amenorrhea, migraine admitted under Neurology with worsening headache, nausea, vomiting and blurred vision. There ...

Background: Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) is the commonest genetic endocrine disorder, affecting 1 in 18 000 UK births. The 2010 CaHASE Study identified a myriad of health problems associated with CAH and its treatment, and a lack of consensus on treatment strategies in adults. Endocrine Society guidelines (2010, revised 2018) have since been published to support management. As one of the original CaHASE centres, we have audited our recent practice against these new sta...

Introduction: Insulin-sensitive tissues such as liver and skeletal muscle modify their gene expression under conditions of obesity-induced insulin resistance, and some of these gene products may be released to maintain glucose homeostasis. This study aimed to identify mRNAs encoding liver and skeletal muscle peptides that have the potential to regulate β-cell function by binding to islet GPCRs, and to quantify changes in expression of these liver and muscle mRNAs in obese...

Skeletal muscle exists in a state of continuous synthesis and breakdown of muscle proteins in order to preserve normal metabolic and locomotive functioning. Hormones are well established regulators of this homeostatic process. Chronic systemic inflammation can dysregulate skeletal muscle homeostasis via the disruption of endocrine signalling pathways. This can result in skeletal muscle atrophy, which is strongly implicated in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes and sarcopenia....

Although characterised predominantly for its role in the brain, the neuropeptide kisspeptin has previously been shown to potentiate glucose-stimulated insulin through its receptor, GPR54; expressed abundantly in β-cells. We have previously reported a physiological role for kisspeptin signalling in the islet adaptation to pregnancy, using a β-cell specific GPR54 knockout mouse line (βGPR54ko). The aim of the present study was to examine the effects of impaired &#...

Previous studies have shown beneficial effects of the corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH) family, including the urocortins (UCN1, UCN2 and UCN3), on pancreatic islets and subsequent glucose homeostasis. However, the physiological relevance of this interaction is not currently understood. CRH and urocortins are also expressed by placenta, so this study investigated whether signalling through CRH receptor 1 or 2 (CRHR1/CRHR2) plays a role in the islet adaptation to pregnancy. ...

Introduction: The risk of maternal death from aortic-dissection(AoD) during pregnancy/post-partum in TS is increased, due to TS-associated risk factors (bicuspid-aortic-valve(BAV), aortic-coarctation, aortic-dilatation, hypertension) and the increased cardiovascular strain of pregnancy itself. TS-guidelines advice against pregnancy in the presence of severe aortic-dilatation or moderate dilatation with AoD-risk factors; and after aortic surgery a high risk remains. However, fe...