Endocrine Abstracts

IntroductionA high calcium-phosphate product is thought to increase the risk of soft tissue calcification in hypoparathyroidism, including cataracts. Based on small case series, cataracts in hypoparathyroidism typically develop in the posterior subcapsular region of the lens. However, the mechanism of cataract formation is still not well understood.Materials and methodsIn a large cohort of 1014 patients with ...

Context: Normocalcemic hyperparathyroidism (NHPT) is considered as an earlier or milder phenotype compared to traditional primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT). To make a correct diagnosis, secondary hyperparathyroidism due to low calcium intake must be excluded. Whether calcium intake might affect presentation of PHPT vs NHPT has never been addressed consistently.Objective: To describe patients with a diagnosis of NHPT or PHPT in relation to their calcium ...

Context: Patients with primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) may be treated with denosumab due to coexisting osteoporosis. Few studies have been conducted in this population.Case presentation: An 84-year-old woman was seen in the outpatient clinic in March 2018 due to calcium levels at the upper limit of reference range (10,2 mg/dl) associated with elevated levels of PTH (112 pg/ml) and sufficient 25(OH)Vit D (24 ng/ml) levels, findings consistent with mild...

Clinical vignetteA 65-year-old woman was hospitalized due to severe hypercalcemia (albumin-corrected calcium 16.9 mg/dl) associated with severe renal failure (creatinine 3.48 mg/ml), normal phosphate levels (3.9 mg/dl) and PTH < 5 pg/ml. Her past medical history included total thyroidectomy complicated by chronic hypoparathyroidism, for which she was followed by her primary care physician. One year before hospital admission, renal function was normal...

Context: Although Trabecular Bone Score (TBS) has been widely and independently associated with fragility fractures, its diagnostic power in certain populations remains to be established. Women initiating aromatase inhibitors for breast cancer should be screened for bone health to prevent cancer treatment-induced bone loss as much as possible. TBS is regarded as an adjunctive tool to evaluate these patients, but thresholds of pharmacologic interventions are still a gray zone, ...

Introduction: Adjuvant therapy with aromatase-inhibitors (AIs) increases bone loss and fracture risk. Concomitant antiresorptive treatment is currently recommended. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of AIs on bone metabolism and mineral density at 12 and 24 months.Methods: Among 400 women on AIs who attended our Endocrinology Unit from 2014 to 2016, we retrospectively evaluated those who initially refused antiresorptive and took cholecalc...

Context: ß-CTX are considered useful markers of response to denosumab and other anti-resorbtive treatments for osteoporosis. We report an unusual case of a completely absent effect of both denosumab and bisphosphonates on bone resorption markers.Case description: In 2017 a 74-year-old woman sought medical attention at the Endocrinology Unit of Policlinico di Sant’Orsola for the evaluation of an adrenal adenoma associated with osteoporosis. Meno...

Cushing disease and hypophosphatasia are rare conditions that may be both responsible of an important impairment of bone metabolism with increased fracture risk. We reported for the first time a case of a 43-year-old woman that came at our attention for recent onset of alopecia and amenorrhea. At the anamnesis, she denied any past relevant events and no drug assumption. At the physical examination, she presented rubeosis and facies lunaris and central adipose distribution (wai...

Introduction: Primary aldosteronism (PA) features a higher prevalence of cardiovascular events and renal complications as compared with essential hypertension. The effects of aldosterone excess on ascending aorta have never been investigated in human subjects.Methods: From August 2014 to December 2015, we enrolled forty-seven consecutive PA outpatients who had not undergone surgery of the adrenal mass. Hypercortisolism and pheochromocytoma were excluded....

Introduction: Hypoparathyroidism (Hypo) is associated with a higher risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and renal stones, although the time to onset of these complications in the disease’s natural history has never been explored. Calcium-Phosphate product (CaxP) has been shown to be a risk factor for moderate renal disease in Hypo in a limited number of cross-sectional or case-control studies.Objective: To determine the time of onset of incident se...