Endocrine Abstracts

Objective: Growth hormone (GH) deficiency in adult patients is associated with poor quality of life and increased cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. We studied the effects of GH replacement on the lipid profile in adult patients with GH deficiency treated over a 3-year period.Method: A retrospective analysis of 70 adult patients, who had completed 3 years of GH therapy. Growth hormone is initiated at a dose of 0.3 mg/day and titrated to 0.5 mg/day o...

Background: Struma ovarii, defined as containing 50% or more thyroid tissue is rare and accounts for 1% of ovarian tumours. Presentation is non-specific, relating to mass effect. Although the tumour predominantly consists of thyroidal tissue, features of hyperthyroidism occur in <5% of cases. Majority are benign, histological features of thyroid cancer are found in about 5–10%. Seventy per cent of these are papillary thyroid cancer (PTC). We present a case of struma o...

Introduction: Thyrotoxicosis is a common endocrine disorder; variable degree of hepatic dysfunction is often seen with thyrotoxicosis. Severe liver dysfunction associated with thyrotoxicosis occurs rarely. The prevalence of liver abnormality with thyrotoxicosis is reported to be ~ 15–30%. The mechanism of liver abnormality is not well understood; direct thyroid hormone mediated hepatocyte injury has been raised as a possible mechanism. We conducted a retrospective review ...

Pituitary sarcoidosis is a rare form of neurosarcoid, commonly associated with multisystemic sarcoidosis. The most common intracranial site of sarcoidosis leading to endocrine involvement is the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland. The prevalence of hypothalamic–pituitary involvement in multisystemic sarcoiosis is reported to be around 5%.Granulomatous infiltration of the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland always results in endocrine disorder, GH...

Objective: Exogenous and endogenous opioids affect the hypothalamic–pituitary–gonadal axis through binding to receptors centrally and by peripheral inhibition of testosterone synthesis, thereby altering the release of hormones. Approximately 12% of patients with persistent non-cancer pain use strong opioid analgesics in the UK, but the action on endocrine function may not be recognised. The aim of this study is to establish the incidence of gonadotrophin and other en...

Most authorities recognise adult growth hormone deficiency (AGHD) as a distinct endocrine disorder, although determining an appropriate strategy for optimising replacement remains controversial.We reviewed the outcome of a cohort of patients treated with a fixed graded initiation phase followed by an individualised titration phase. Patients were initiated on a starting dose of 0.3 mg recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) for one month, with increases t...