Endocrine Abstracts

We present a case of severe thyroid-associated orbitopathy in a 44-year-old man with metastatic follicular carcinoma of the thyroid. He presented with a neck lump, and following further investigations, underwent a hemithyroidectomy followed by a completion thyroidectomy. Histology of the thyroid confirmed widely invasive follicular carcinoma of Hurthle cell type with foci of vascular invasion (pT3 Nx Mx). He received radioactive iodine ablation therapy (3.7GBq), ...

We present a case of severe thyroid-associated orbitopathy in a 44-year-old man with metastatic follicular carcinoma of the thyroid. He presented with a neck lump, and following further investigations, underwent a hemithyroidectomy followed by a completion thyroidectomy. Histology of the thyroid confirmed widely invasive follicular carcinoma of Hurthle cell type with foci of vascular invasion (pT3 Nx Mx). He received radioactive iodine ablation therapy (3.7GBq), ...

Background: Diagnostic thyroid scans using technetium-99m pertechnetate are widely used to differentiate the causes of hyperthyroidism. Only 1-5% of the administered isotope is taken up by the thyroid after 20 minutes resulting in high background radioactivity.Objectives: To determine the effective radiation dose and calculated organ doses after a standard administration of Technetium-99m pertechnetate</ce:under...

Background: A mutation in POMC in retriever dogs prevents production of the POMC-derived peptides β-MSH and β-endorphin but not α-MSH and is associated with weight, adiposity and owner-reported food motivation (Raffan et al, 2016). Melanocortin signalling is central to the control of energy homeostasis but the relative contribution of the POMC derived neuropeptides is not well understood because rodents produce only α-MSH whereas humans, like dogs,...

Introduction: Cushing’s syndrome is a known risk factor for aortic dissection but the association of these conditions is rare. Hypercortisolism is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and accounts for the high morbidity & mortality in untreated patients.Case Study: A 64y old male presented with acute onset chest pain, radiating to the back. CT angiogram showed Stanford Type B dissection involving the distal aortic arch/des...

Introduction: Normocalcaemic hyperparathyroidism (nHPT) is a persistently elevated parathyroid hormone (PTH) with normal ionised calcium levels in the absence of secondary hyperparathyroidism. nHPT is proposed to be an earlier phase of hypercalcaemic primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT). nHPT patients can present with progressive complications such as osteoporosis and nephrolithiasis. Currently, there is no diagnostic test to confirm primary hyperparathyroidism in nHPT patients,...

A 30 year old woman presented with two year history of right lower leg pain. The pain was constant, worse in cold weather, not worsened by weight bearing and occasionally woke her from sleep. On examination she was tender on palpation of mid distal right tibia. X ray showed sclerotic portions of right tibia and fibula. MR lower right leg demonstrated extensive area of intramedullary bone marrow oedema in the distal half of the right tibia with associated cortical thickening an...

Background: Increased circulating bile acids may contribute to improved glucose control and augmented secretion of the gut hormones peptide tyrosine tyrosine (PYY) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) observed post-prandially in patients following bariatric surgery. Oral bile acids could represent a non-surgical means of improving glucose tolerance after a meal.Aim: To investigate the effects of a single oral dose of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) and chenod...

Introduction: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the commonest endocrine disorder in women and polycystic ovaries are characterized by excess ovarian stroma that has implications for disordered follicle development in PCOS. The factors contributing to proliferation and increased density of stroma remain unclear but local overproduction of androgens may be involved.Aim: To examine differential expression of genes that regulate key proteins that comprise ...

Case history: A 58 year old woman presented to her GP when her family members noted prominence of her left eye. She had a background history of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Her main symptom of PCOS was hirsutism. She had been treated initially with the combined oral contraceptive pill ‘Dianette’ (ethinyloestradiol/cyproterone) but had also been treated intermittently with varying doses of 25–100 mg cyproterone acetate (CPA) 10 days/cycle. Post menopause she...