Endocrine Abstracts

Intranasal presentations of pituitary tumours are rare. Management can be difficult and delayed due to their location and extension. Macroprolactinomas are uncommon and can often pursue an aggressive clinical course, including invasion into the nasopharynx.We describe three cases of prolactinomas that initially presented to the ENT Department as nasal polyps. Table 1 highlights their clinical features and response to treatment. Recurrence of nasal polyps...

The incretin hormones glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) constitute the enteroinsular axis which promotes postprandial insulin secretion. The therapeutic potential of these hormones in diabetes is limited by their rapid inactivation by the enzyme dipeptidylpeptidase-IV (DPP-IV). Here we investigated the acute effects of metformin in the presence and absence of food on DPP-IV activity in type 2 diabetes....

In humans and rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) the zona reticularis of the adrenal gland produces large amounts of dehydoepiandrosterone (DHEA) and its sulfated form, DHEAS. The circulating levels of these steroids are particularly high during early adulthood, and they then decline gradually during aging, especially in females. To help elucidate the physiological function of this steroidal loss we examined the 24-hour plasma profiles of DHEAS in female rhesus monkeys, us...

Background: In Belgium, a land with borderline iodine intake, the prevalence of goiter is 6 to 40%. This raises the question of an economically affordable treatment with few side effects. In euthyroid goiters, the effect of radioiodine on volume reduction is debated. Most data were described last century and do not take into account recent thyroid hormone measurements, newer ultrasonography techniques and changes in iodine supplementation. Doses administered in the past and el...

Background: Over the last two decades, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) has increasingly been recognized as a fracture risk factor, despite the occurrence of normal to even increased bone mineral density (BMD) (1). The dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) derived trabecular bone score (TBS) is considered to be a proxy of bone quality and has been reported to be diminished in diabetic patients (2) and insulin resistant, non-diabetic postmenopausal women (3).</...

Background and methods: The HORIZON-PFT is a multinational, 3-year, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial evaluating the potential of once-yearly zoledronic acid (ZOL) 5 mg, infused over 15 minutes, to decrease risk of fracture in 7736 postmenopausal osteoporotic women 65–89 years of age.Results: Treatment with ZOL 5 mg resulted in significant relative risk reductions in morphometric vertebral fracture of 70% vs PBO (3.8% vs 12.8%; 95% ...

Background: Observational and genetic Mendelian randomisation (MR) data has demonstrated the association of adulthood overweight/obesity with development of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). However, the contribution of early life (i.e. childhood/adolescence) body composition on incident PCOS is unclear. This study determines the influence of body composition on the likelihood of developing PCOS.Methods: We conducted a 2-sample Mendelian randomisation st...

The Hypoparathyroidism Symptom Diary (HypoPT-SD) was developed for the daily assessment of key symptoms and impact of HypoPT as reported by patients with chronic HypoPT and includes 13-items: a 7-item Symptom subscale, 4-item Impact subscale, and single-item anxiety and depression scores. The current analysis was undertaken to confirm test-retest reliability and construct validity of HypoPT SD Symptom subscale scores using data collected during two open-label, single-arm studi...

A 57 year-old gentleman with uncomplicated Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and 30 pack year smoking history was assessed in outpatient endocrinology clinic with a 4 month history of non-specific symptoms, including dizziness, lack of energy and intermittent bi-frontal headaches described as ‘pressure behind the eyes’. There was no history of exogenous steroid use. Bloods at 0833 h identified deficiency in testosterone (<1 nmol/l; N= 6–30 nmol/l), thyroxine...

Background: Thyroid nodules are a common finding in clinical practice. Among classic risk factors for thyroid cancer, thyroid scintigraphy has traditionally been attributed prognostic value, with cold nodules implying greater risk. However, research supporting this assumption is of considerable age and possibly influenced by selection bias. In this study, we aimed to calculate the risk of malignancy in cold and hot nodules.Material and Methods: All thyro...