Endocrine Abstracts

Objective: Variability in growth hormone (GH) responsiveness is evident in adult hypopituitary patients receiving recombinant GH (rhGH). Doses vary up to 4-fold for unexplained reasons. Deletion of exon 3 in the GH receptor (d3-GHR) has been linked to an increased response to GH treatment in children, although data are conflicting. We investigated the role of the d3-GHR polymorphism in determining GH responsiveness in adult GH deficient patients.Methods:...

Hypopituitarism is associated with profound androgen deficiency, even in patients who are adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) replete. DHEA has been shown to have a beneficial effect on well-being in patients with adrenal failure. We hypothesised that DHEA may be additive to the known effects of GH on psychological well-being in patients with hypopituitarism. In a double blind placebo controlled trial 50 mg DHEA or placebo was added to standard replacement, including growth ho...

The preparation of Sandostatin LAR® injections using a 2 ml ampoule of vehicle solution may be associated with some technical difficulties of administration, with adverse consequences for patients. The development of a 2.5 ml prefilled syringe may alleviate some of these problems. We have compared these two methods of Sandostatin LAR® administration in 17 patients with acromegaly and 5 patients with neuro-endocrine tumours, (6 drug naïve, 1...