Endocrine Abstracts

Case HistoryWe report a 28-year-old man who presented initially to our ENT department with 3-year history of intermittent epistaxis subsequently found to have an extensive acidophil-stem-cell adenoma, rare pituitary tumours usually unresponsive to dopamine agonists requiring radiotherapy and somatostatin analogues in resistant cases.He was clinically acromegalic, demonstrating an elevated Growth Hormone (GH) 17.9 milliunits per lit...

A 49 year old lady was referred to the endocrine clinic for investigation of intermittent hyponatremia. She had two admissions in the year with lower abdominal, back pain and dark urine and treated for urinary infections.Serum sodium was 112,114 millimoles per litre, which responded to fluid restriction.She had a past history of syncopal episodes, hypertension treated with atenolol, amlodipine. She was a nonsmoker, alcohol intake was 14 units per week.</...

Urinary steroid profiling by capillary gas chromatography is useful for identification of disordered steroid metabolism and, when 24h collections are made, for determination of steroid production rates. We have noted a substantial clinical demand for analysis of random collections, most commonly from children with precocious puberty and a general belief that relating steroid levels to creatinine would offset the disadvantage of a short collection. Given the known circadian var...

Presentation: A 66 year old woman, was admitted as an emergency with one week history of profound weakness ('had to crawl to the fridge to get milk for tea'), lethargy, productive cough and hypokalaemia (GP results: Na 141, K 1.5, bicarbonate 47 (23-28), Creatinine 54 (μmol/l). Her medication: Amlodipine 5 mg od, Bendrofluazide 2.5 mg od, Aspirin 75 mg.PMH: hypertension, moderate COPD and peripheral vascular disease. She smoked 20 cigarettes a day an...

Introduction: The mode of pituitary function deterioration in patients with PROP1 mutation is not fully known and understood. The function of adrenal axis requires special attention.Aim: To investigate the time/mode/markers of pituitary function deterioration in families/sporadic patients with PROP1 mutation during longitudinal observation.Methods: We performed retrospective longitudinal (36.4 years, s.d. = 13.6) analy...

Background: Pituitary stalk lesions (PSL) is a general term used to describe changes located in the pituitary infundibulum. Special anatomical locus makes the diagnosis difficult to establish. Most of the patients with PSL characterizes with hypopituitarism and multiple metabolic abnormalities.Aim: To present the characteristic of patients with PSL.Methods: We analyzed data of 35 patients (21 M/14 W) with pituitary stalk ...

Background: A recent, large phase III study (n=162) showed that treatment with pasireotide rapidly decreased urinary free cortisol (UFC) levels and improved signs and symptoms in patients with Cushing’s disease. Here, we report the experience of a patient enrolled in this trial who received pasireotide for 36 months.Results: A 31-year-old male presented in June 2008 with persistent Cushing’s disease despite two previous pituitary surgica...

Introduction: The (GH) gene, identical to that in the pituitary, is expressed in retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) in chickens, rats, mice and humans. Retinal GH is a neuroprotective factor, as it promotes RGC survival and, in humans, the concentration of GH in vitreous fluid may be a marker for ocular disease. Increasing retinal GH expression could thus have therapeutic potential. The factors regulating retinal GH expression are, however, unknown. The possibility that GH-releasin...

Background: Thyroid damage is known to occur during experimental iodine-induced goiter. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small non-coding RNAs regulating gene expression. Dysregulation of specific miRNAs can interfere with tissue homeostasis. The purpose of this study was to investigate the dynamic expression profiles of miRNAs during adequate or mild-excess iodine supplementation in the iodine-deficient thyroid.Methods: Hyperplastic goiter was induced ...

Introduction: The ectopic ACTH syndrome (EAS) is associated with a variety of malignancies, mostly of (neuro-)endocrine origin. Several series report on the relative contribution of EAS in the spectrum of Cushing’s syndrome. However, information on the incidence/prevalence of EAS in the setting of patients diagnosed with thoracic or gastroenteropancreatic (GEP) neuroendocrine tumours (NETs) is virtually absent.Study design: In our tertiary academic ...