Endocrine Abstracts

Insulin is a life-saving drug but can be life threatening if not prescribed properly. A prospective, consecutive audit of insulin prescription was carried out on all medical and surgical patients admitted to South Tipperary General Hospital with types 1 and 2 diabetes mellitus in November 2013. The practice was compared with hospital guidelines which are consistent with other hospitals nationally. Three prescribing practices were audited: i) the prescription of insulin on insu...

A 61-year-old gentleman, with a background of chronic schizophrenia, presented with hyponatraemia in 2008 and was diagnosed with Addison’s disease. He had two previous admissions with hyponatraemia in 2002 and 2006. During his first admission his hyponatraemia was attributed to volume depletion secondary to vomiting, and he responded to fluid resuscitation. On the second occasion, SIADH (syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone) was diagnosed secondary to antipsycho...

Introduction: Thyroid dysfunction is one of the commonest endocrine disorders with hypothyroidism being the most common thyroid dysfunction in the elderly population[1]. An elderly patient with thyroid dysfunction can be asymptomatic, or present with non-specific symptoms, making biochemical testing of thyroid function useful and essential. We reviewed the screening rate and prevalence of thyroid dysfunction in older medical patient patients admitted to an Irish sec...

Vitamin D insufficiency is common in the Irish population. Patients with primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) and co-existing vitamin D insufficiency have higher PTH levels, increased bone turnover and increased risk of postoperative hypocalcaemia. The 3rd International Workshop on PHPT recommended measurement of serum 25-OH Vitamin D in all patients with PHPT, and treatment where required to maintain 25-OH Vitamin D >50 nmol/l. Our study aimed to assess vitamin D status in ...