Endocrine Abstracts

This 46 year old lady with no significant past medical history was referred urgently to the Endocrine Investigation Unit with a 9 month history of increasing lethargy and gradual weight loss of around 5 kg. Two months prior, she had been diagnosed with subclinical hypothyroidism and after commencing Levothyroxine, quickly lost another 5 kg in weight over a period of 6 weeks and had postural dizziness with systolic BP readings between 80 and 90 mmHg. She was having a normal men...

Identifying the cause of hypercortisolism is vital in ensuring the correct treatment plan for a patient. I present the case of a patient in whom the desmopressin test, as an adjunct to the CRH test, proved helpful in determining the cause. A 27 year old man who initially presented with weight gain, abdominal striae and sweating was admitted with low mood, anxiety and suicidal ideation. Tests showed elevated 24 hour urinary cortisol (highest 1446 nmol/24 hours), random cortisol...

Introduction: National audits suggest significant variation in experience of individual surgeons performing adrenalectomies. A 2016 cross specialty consensus statement recommended that adrenal surgeons perform a minimum of six adrenalectomies per year given improved outcomes with higher volume surgeons. Patients in the Scottish Highlands requiring adrenalectomy are referred to a single Consultant Urologist with a specialist interest in retroperitoneal surgery based in Raigmore...