Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitors are a new class of oral anti-diabetic medications that improve glycaemia by reducing the amount of glucose being absorbed in the kidneys. SGLT2 inhibitors have been proven to improve blood pressure, cardiovascular health and kidney disease. Despite their beneficial clinical effects, their exact mechanism of action is not fully explored. The aim of this project was to investigate the effect of SGLT2 ...

Primary aldosteronism is an endocrine form of hypertension which is highly prevalent among hypertensive population but its rate of detection is far lower than its real prevalence.This might be due to lack of adequate information or expertise in general practitioners or even among hypertension specialists, other than endocrinologists. As PA is common, and has a much higher cardiovascular risk profile than age-, sex-, and blood pressure (BP)–matched e...

Together with Profs Lefkowitz and Kobilka, G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) have taken the stage in the 2012 Nobel award for Chemistry. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences states that ‘About half of all medications achieve their effect through G-protein-coupled receptors’. As shown in previous talks in this session, GPCRs are not acting individually; often they form homodimers and, more interestingly, they may occur as heterodimers. Heteromers open a completely ...

Phaeochromocytoma (PH) and functional paraganglioma (FPGL) are neoplasm of chromaffin tissue that synthesise catecholamines and are mostly located in adrenal medulla (PH) or elsewhere (FPGL). Patients may also harbour non-secreting head and neck paragangliomas (PGL). Up to ¼ of PH/PGL are familial. A high degree of suspicion for PH and FPGL should be risen in case of spells, resistant hypertension, family history of PH/PGL, a genetic syndrome that predispose to PH (e.g. M...

Background: Dexamethasone significantly improved outcomes in patients requiring supplementary oxygen and in ventilated patients with COVID-19 in the RECOVERY trial. Consequently, dexamethasone is now routinely used in these patients. However, dysglycaemia is commonly associated with steroid use and is an established risk factor for poorer outcomes in COVID-19. In this study, we aimed to elucidate the effect of dexamethasone use in patients hospitalised with COVID-19 in a real-...

Introduction: Diabetes has been associated with poorer outcomes with COVID-19 infection, but precise predictors of mortality in patients with diabetes remain unclear. We assessed predictors of adverse outcomes in patients hospitalised with COVID-19 in Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust (ICHNT) hospitals during the first and second waves of COVID-19 to determine if outcomes for patients with diabetes have evolved with new variants and treatments.Method...

Background: Hypogonadotrophic Hypogonadism (HH) is characterised by hypogonadism in the context of low gonadotrophin levels, frequently due to a defect in hypothalamic function e.g. Kallman’s syndrome. However, no direct test of hypothalamic function currently exists. Kisspeptin is a hypothalamic neuropeptide that stimulates endogenous GnRH release. Thus, we investigated whether kisspeptin could be used to interrogate hypothalamic function in men with HH.<p class="abs...

Introduction: Since 2012, different heterozygous mutations in the THRA gene have been described in patients with resistance to thyroid hormone alpha (RTHα). The associating symptoms are reminiscent of untreated congenital hypothyroidism (growth retardation, psycho-neuromotor disorders, delayed bone development and bradycardia) but with raised T3/T4 ratio and normal TSH levels. All genetic abnormalities act in a dominant negative (DN) manner against functional rec...

Introduction: Androgen secreting neoplasms of the ovary are rare and usually show autonomous secretion. Steroid cell tumors of the ovary represent less than 0.1% of all ovarian tumors and are a subgroup of sex cord-stromal tumors. In most cases, patients present with androgenic clinical features.Case report: A 58-year-old woman complained of rapid onset of androgenic alopecia, excessive hirsutism and clitoromegaly. Endocrine assessment showed high levels...

Primary aldosteronism is the most common form of secondary hypertension. The detection of primary aldosteronism is of particular importance, because it provides an opportunity for a targeted treatment (surgical for unilateral forms and medical with mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists for bilateral forms). PA diagnosis comprises screening, confirmation testing and subtype diagnosis.Guidelines recommend that all patients for whom the surgical treatment ...