Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Postoperative diabetes insipidus (DI) occurs predominantly following pituitary surgery. Here we present a case of transient DI developing after coronary artery bypass surgery (CABG) and aortic valve replacement and discuss the potential mechanisms.Case Presentation: A 69-year-old female with a past medical history of atrial fibrillation, hypertension and stroke was admitted for elective aortic valve replacement for severe aortic stenosis. The...

Abstract: The most commonly used techniques to measure vitamin D are automated immunoassays, which are known to be affected by interferences, especially from immunoglobulins present in the patient’s serum. We present a case of a patient with IgA myeloma in whom interference with the vitamin D assay was identified. An 76-year-old male, known to have: ischemic heart disease, atrial fibrillation, COPD, type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and hypertension was referred to the Endocrinolo...

Introduction: There has been a substantial increase in our knowledge of the genetic architecture of thyroid function, with numerous variants associated with TSH and/or FT4 levels. However, our knowledge of the genetic variants associated with thyroid disease is more limited.Methods: Data was obtained from the Neale laboratory† which provided a case-control study to identify single nucleotide polymorphisms associated with a diagnosis of hypothyroidi...

Introduction: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is associated with increased cardiovascular risk, which may relate to enhanced sympathetic nervous system (SNS) activation. The cerebral pathways involved in this process are not known.Aims: i) To compare SNS activation in response to isometric forearm contraction (IFC) in patients with PCOS and controls. ii) To identify and compare the neuronal signatures of this response.Methods: 15 ...

Background: Metabolic disorders such as type 2 diabetes are risk factors for the development of dementia. In addition to vascular dysfunction, insulin resistance may be important since altered insulin sensitivity is associated with changes in neurogenesis. Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a disorder characterised by insulin resistance. Little is known about the impact of metabolic abnormalities on brain structure and function in younger adults.Objecti...

Background: Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) is associated with insulin resistance, hyperandrogenism and dyslipidaemia but the effects of these disturbances on long-term health are not known.Aims: To determine the relative risk of diabetes, cancer, large vessel disease (LVD) and death for young women diagnosed with PCOS.Design: Data were extracted from The General Practice Research Database (GPRD), a longitudinal, anonymised resear...

Background and aim: Ethnic differences in testosterone concentrations may account for variation in the prevalence of androgen-mediated disorders amongst different racial groups. Previous reports in middle-aged subjects have either found no differences, or a lowered TT and calculated free testosterone (CFT) in South Asian (SA) compared with Caucasian men. In light of this uncertainty and to exclude any confounding influence of age we sought to determine the effect of ethnicity ...

A 46-year-old gentleman presented with a history of general lethargy, weight gain, limb weakness, easy bruising and severe back ache. Examination showed central obesity, proximal myopathy, with marked thinning and extensive bruising of the skin. His blood pressure and glycemic control were suboptimal and resistant to treatment. Routine blood tests including a chest X-ray were normal. An overnight dexamethasone suppression test showed failed serum cortisol suppression (749 nmol...

Background and aims: Subjects with primary (PAI) and secondary adrenal insufficiency (SAI)/hypopituitarism have an increased cardiovascular mortality for reasons that are unclear. Arterial stiffness is an independent risk factor for increased cardiovascular mortality. We sought to measure arterial stiffness in subjects with AI and aimed to identify which factors might account for any increase observed.Methods: Ethical approval was obtained for this study...

Background: CB1 antagonism has potential benefits in the metabolic syndrome, with effects mediated through central orexigenic mechanisms and peripheral action on adipose tissue. We have previously demonstrated the inhibitory effects of CB1 inactivation on preadipocyte proliferation and now extend these studies to in vitro adipogenesis.Aims: To compare the effects of CB1 agonism and antagonism on differentiation in both preadipocyte cell lines and ...