Endocrine Abstracts

Aim: Investigation of thyroid nodules usually involves an ultrasound and fine needle aspiration (FNA); however it could still be challenging to devise a management plan based on these. The aim of our study was to compare the reliability of two thyroid FNA’s and ultrasound in comparison to post-operative histology in managing thyroid nodules.Methods: The data on patients who had underwent thyroidectomy and had at least two FNAs and Ultrasound pre-ope...

Background: Adult spontaneous hypoglycaemia in non-diabetic patients is not a diagnosis per se but a manifestation of a disease and is often a diagnostic challenge. Although rare, it’s important to exclude endogenous hyperinsulinemia, because treatment can be curative. The aim of our audit was to assess the usefulness of various investigations done for spontaneous hypoglycaemia in diagnosing Insulinoma.Methods: Data on 98 non-diabetic patie...

Aim: Bariatric surgery can provide significant weight loss but a complete resolution obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) cannot be predicted. The aim of our audit was to assess the prevalence of OSA in bariatric clinics and outcomes after malabsorptive bariatric surgery.Methods: Retrospective observational analysis was performed on patients who had undergone bariatric surgery (laparoscopic gastric bypass and sleeve gastrectomy) and completed a minimum of 6 mo...

Aim: Establishing the aetiological diagnosis of hyperthyroidism relies on clinical examination, ultrasound imaging and thyroid antibodies; however there is a wide variation in practice in which of the aforementioned approaches are used. The aim of our study was to assess the reliability of clinical examination of thyroid gland in patients with hyperthyroidism, using ultrasound (US) as the reference.Methods: Case notes and letters of patients of 133 patie...

Aim: The aim of our study was to assess the correlation between pre-operative fine needles aspiration based cytology with post-operative histology in patients with thyroid nodules.Methods: A retrospective analysis of patients who had thyroidectomy (hemi, subtotal, or total) was conducted and information on histology was obtained. Pre-operative FNA (done once or twice) was also obtained and compared with histology. Patients operated for Graves’ disea...

Introduction: Bariatric surgery is an important treatment option for morbid obesity. The current guidelines recommend testing and supplementation of vitamin D postoperatively. The aim of our study was to assess the need for preoperative proactive supplementation of vitamin D. Methods All patients who had restrictive bariatric surgery (laparoscopic gastric bypass or sleeve gastrectomy) between January 2010 and June 2011 were included. Data was collected retrospectively from com...

Aim: An increasing proportion of patients are referred to endocrine clinics for assessment of an endocrine reason for obesity. The aim of our study was to assess the hormone profiles of patients referred for bariatric surgery.Methods: Patients referred to bariatric surgery clinic were investigated for hypothyroidism (TSH, T4), Cushing’s disease (2 mg-overnight dexamethasone suppression test), acromegaly (IGF1) and Vitamin D deficiency (PT...

Introduction: Benign prostatic hypertrophy is common amongst elderly men, and usually treated with the testosterone blocker, finasteride. However, the treatment of such a condition alongside hypo-pituitarism and low testosterone levels presents with a therapeutic dilemma.Case report: An 88-year-old gentleman who was admitted following recurrent episodes of confusion and falls was found to have a serum sodium level of 114 mmol/l, serum osmolality of 258 m...

Introduction: Cerebral ischaemic events in young patients due to patent foramen ovale are rare. A more plausible diagnosis had clouded the initial management and diagnosis of such a case in a young male patient.Case report: A 19-year-old gentleman was admitted with vomiting and profound hyponatraemia of 99 mmol/l. He was diagnosed to have Addison’s disease (with positive adrenal antibodies) following a flat short synacthen test. He warranted ITU adm...

Aim: This study was aimed to assess the need for multiple cortisol samples in ruling out adrenal insufficiency by standard dose Short Synacthen Tests (SST) and Low Dose Short Synacthen Tests (LDSST).Method: We assessed the lab results of 767 patients who attended Metabolic Unit of a University Hospital in the UK from 1999 to 2006 for assessment of adrenal reserve. In LDSST, serum cortisol was measured at 0, 30 and 40 min after administration of 1 mcg of ...