Endocrine Abstracts

Patients with craniopharyngioma are frequently obese with a high prevalence of vascular morbidity. Many patients with treated craniopharyngioma have severe GH deficiency (GHD), which independently results in abnormal body composition and increased cardiovascular risk. This study investigated how GH treatment influences body composition in adults with treated craniopharyngioma and GHD.Using the electronic database Diabeta3® we identified 50 patients ...

Background: Self-management is essential for patients with adrenal insufficiency (AI) to achieve optimal outcomes of glucocorticoid (GC) replacement therapy by minimising adverse effects from over- or under-replacement and appropriately adjusting the dose in intercurrent illness to prevent adrenal crisis. Evidence suggests that many patients report deficits in self-management especially concerning ‘sick day rules’, prevention and management of adrenal crisis and have...

Introduction: Endocrine deficiency as a result of glandular infiltration by metastatic cancer is considered rare. Metastases to the adrenal cortex are relatively common and we present the clinical presentation and radiological appearances of cases involving pituitary and adrenal metastases.Case histories: Case 1: An 84 year old male with bronchogenic carcinoma presented with lethargy, polyuria and dehydration. The serum Na+ was 156 mmol...

A 44-year-old woman presented to an emergency department with ear pain and worsening of longstanding headache. There was no history of menstrual disturbance, galactorrhoea, tiredness or weight gain and physical examination demonstrated only a left homonymous hemianopia. CT head scan revealed a brightly enhancing, enormous, lobulated mass arising from the pituitary fossa and causing obstructive hydrocephalus through compression of the fourth ventricle. Following collection of b...

Objective: To determine whether transdermal oestrogen (E2) preparations alter total cortisol and cortisol binding globulin (CBG) concentration similarly to oral E2 treatment.Methods: This cross-sectional, observational study compared levels of total serum cortisol, CBG, the free cortisol index (FCI) and salivary cortisol levels (as a measure of free cortisol) in oestrogen naïve women (n=15), women taking oral oestrogen (...