Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Hyperthyroidism is a thyroid hormone excess state which usually manifests with various cardiovascular complications such as sinus tachycardia, tachyarrhythmia and high output cardiac failure. Pulmonary embolism is not commonly associated with thyrotoxicosis but some studies have shown an increased propensity of thromboembolic disease with thyrotoxicosis. We rep...

A 57-year-old woman was referred due to elevated urine & serum human chorionic gonadotrophin (β-hCG) concentrations found at routine pre-operative assessment. She was asymptomatic and was not pregnant. Her past history included a long standing benign 7 cm×5 cm myofibroblastic mass in her left forearm asthma, rotator cuff tear and a uterine fibroid. Her medications were cyclical norethisterone, lansoprazole, frusemide & inhalers. The left forearm mass was not ...

Klinefelter syndrome is the most common genetic cause of primary hypogonadism in men. Upto 80% have karyotype 47 XXY. It can present with a wide range of phenotypical and biochemical abnormalities. It is also known to be associated with certain autoimmune diseases. We describe a rare case of Klinefelter syndrome with partial hypopituitarism and suggest screening with full pituitary profile plus dynamics tests at first presentation if clinical suspicion is high. A 36 year old m...

A 69-year-old woman was referred with a 2 year history of frontal balding, deepening voice and weight loss. Past medical history included primary hypothyroidism, osteoarthritis, varicose veins and menopause at age of 50 years. Current medications included levothyroxine. She was otherwise very well and enjoyed heightened physical endurance – regularly cycling >60 miles with a group of male friends. On examination she was virilised with male pattern alopecia, marked fac...

21 year old man presented to the emergency department with hypotensive shock. He had been seeing the GP with complains of poor appetite, intermittent vomiting, increased thirst and postural dizziness for the last 6 months. Previous medical history included tonsillitis, gastritis and learning difficulties. The working differential was severe gastroenteritis with hypovolemic shock, and so he was given immediate fluid resuscitation. He remained hypotensive, and so was given empir...

Parathyroid cysts (PCs) are rare lesions usually found during exploration of neck and mediastinal masses. Ten percent of PCs can be functional and release parathyroid hormones causing hypercalcemia. Most PCs are small but lesions greater than 1 cm can exert pressure effects on adjacent structures\. Diagnosis can be challenging as PCs can mimic thyroid masses with no focal tracer uptake during most functional imaging modalities. Fine needle aspiration (FNA) can help if coupled ...