Endocrine Abstracts

The family of adrenergic receptors contains nine different subtypes of G protein-coupled receptors which mediate the biological effects of adrenaline and noradrenaline. With few exceptions, the full therapeutic potential of subtype-selective therapy has not yet been explored for the group of adrenergic receptors. In the absence of sufficiently subtype-selective ligands which can distinguish between individual receptor subtypes of the adrenergic family, gene-targeted mouse mode...

Objective: Opioids are among the most commonly used symptomatic treatments of somatoform pain disorder. Human and animal studies suggest that chronic exposure to opioids suppresses the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) and the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis. We report on a rare case of secondary adrenal failure and secondary amenorrhea due to hydromorphone treatment.Case report: A 32-year-old female patient presented with fatigue, weakness, orthos...

Objective: Despite combination with peripheral decarboxylase inhibitors significant amounts of L-dopa are peripherally metabolised. In patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) treated with L-dopa and a dopa decarboxylase inhibitor, urinary dopamine concentrations are markedly elevated. We describe here a L-dopa treated PD patient presenting with a clinical and biochemical picture suspicious of phaeochromocytoma.Case report: A 73-year-old female patien...