Endocrine Abstracts

A 42-year-old gentleman of Ghanaian origin presented with a 1 month history of worsening severe proximal myopathy. On presentation his symptoms had progressed to the extent that he was unable to mobilise from his bed. Prior to this illness he had been fit and well. Examination revealed severe proximal myopathy and a uniformly enlarged, smooth thyroid gland. There was no clinical evidence of hyperthyroidism.Blood tests on admission showed a serum potassiu...

A 40-year-old female presented with a 6 week history of right-sided headaches and nausea. She was found to have an Arnold-Chiari malformation and an unusual C3 syrinx on MRI brain scanning. She underwent a foramen magnum decompression and C1 laminectomy. Three weeks later, she was admitted with headaches, nausea and vomiting, and blurring of her vision on left lateral gaze. Whilst in the emergency unit, the patient had a tonic-clonic seizure.Following th...

A 27-year-old woman presented with severely symptomatic Graves and ophthalmopathy (FT4 49.1; TSI 53). Despite 60 mg carbimazole and 240 mg propranolol she required admission to control her symptoms and thyroid function, changing to propylthiouracil 800 mg daily with propranolol (FT4 19.9). Whilst considering thyroidectomy a 6-week pregnancy was confirmed. She relapsed (? compliance) and was admitted at 14 weeks with hyperemesis gravidarum (FT4 >77.2), which responded to an...

Background: The gut hormone PYY3-36 (PYY) is released into the circulation after eating and physiologically inhibits food intake. Obese and lean subjects are equally sensitive to this effect, however fasting levels of PYY are reduced in obese subjects.Methods: We investigated the postprandial PYY response and satiety response using a visual analogue scale (VAS) to 6 test meals of increasing calorie content in 20 lean and 20 obese subjects. We also infuse...