Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Testicular ultrasound (US) is routinely employed in the evaluation of reproductive and sexual function. However, its use for characteristics other than testicular volume is hampered by a lack of information on the prognostic value of its findings, that to date have only been incorporated in a score proposed by Lenz et al. in 1993.Objectives: We sought to explore whether testicular US examination can predict spermatogenesis and provid...

Introduction: Discontinuation of GH therapy in patients with COGHD after attainment of final height has been associated with impaired somatic development, altered peak bone mass and cardiovascular risk factors. A well-managed transition of care between paediatric and adult health services can improve the clinical and social outcomes in adolescents with GHD.Objective: To assess the quality of the transfer between children and adult medical services in our...

Objective: Endocannabinoids (CBs) are novel lipid mediators that modulate appetitive behaviour and energy metabolism. The overactivation of the endocannabinoid system plays an important role in obesity. Endocannabinoids may regulate the lipid metabolism through their receptors (CB1 and CB2) in liver and adipose tissue. 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11β-HSD1) type 1 regulates the local availability of active glucocorticoid, potent inductors of adipogenic different...

Background: Burned-out tumours (BOT) are rare clinical entities which present with no primary testicular lesion but distant metastases. We report a difficult management of BOT.Case Presentation: A 22-year-old male presented to ER with acute low back pain, severe vomiting and sweating. In past medical history: bilateral orchidopexy for cryptorchidism. Abdominal CT scan displayed two retroperitoneal masses of 35 and 20 mm. The patient was discharged with s...

Introduction: With the improved imaging techniques, Leydig cell tumours (LCTs) are frequently found, accounting up to 22% of testicular tumours. The natural history of LCTs is relatively unknown, because of the small size and heterogeneity of available studies. Since LCTs are often removed, long-term follow-up is missing. The aim of this study was to report the experience with a large cohort of prospectively collected LCTs.Materials and methods: Patients...

Introduction: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) show promising efficacy in the treatment of a wide range of advanced cancers, butlong-term response is currently limited to a subset of patients. Sarcopenia is a condition characterized by loss of skeletal muscle mass and decreased muscle function which occurs in approximately 50% of advanced cancer patients,related to malnutrition, inflammation, and treatments.Objective: The aim of this prospective o...

LHX3, a LIM-homeodomain transcription factor, plays a critical role in pituitary and nervous system development. Mutations in the LHX3 gene are associated with combined pituitary hormone deficiency disease (CPHD). Two female siblings with neonatal complications were diagnosed with CPHD resulting from a novel, recessive mutation in LHX3. The index patient presented with classical symptoms of CPHD, featuring deficiencies of GH, LH, FSH, prolactin, TSH and later onset ACTH defici...

Ageing in men is accompanied by a decline in serum testosterone (T) levels and increased risk of cardiovascular disease, osteopenia, visceral obesity and impaired metabolism. These conditions have complex aetiologies that may share a common pro-inflammatory state. We investigated the impact of T therapy on cytokines and angiogenic factors involved in atherosclerosis and bone loss, in hypogonadal men who underwent androgen replacement. We carried out a 6 months, randomized, dou...

Context: Significant uncertainty exists about the diagnostic accuracy of ultrasonographic (US) features used to predict the risk of thyroid cancer in the pediatric population. Moreover, there are not specific indications for thyroid nodule evaluation in patients during the transition age.Objective: The meta-analysis aimed to address the following question: which thyroid nodule US features have the highest accuracy in predicting malignancy in the transiti...

Background: Hyperandrogenism in postmenopausal women is extremely rare and requires exclusion of malignancy.Case reports: 1. A 65-year-old woman was referred to our Department of Endocrinology for appearance of hirsutism and alopecia for about 2 years. Abdomen-pelvis CT scan showed a 2-cm lesion (45 HU) at the left adrenal gland, confirmed by MRI scan, without loss of signal intensity in opposed-phase sequences. In addition, in the right ovary, a 3-cm le...