Endocrine Abstracts

The adrenal cortex is the primary site of steroid synthesis, producing glucocorticoids under the control of the hypothalamic–pituitary axis and mineralocorticoids under the control of the renin–angiotensin system.Adrenal insufficiency, which can be life threatening, is cause by a number of adrenal disorders, and lifelong management of these patients with exogenous steroids can be challenging. No drug suitably mimics the diurnal pattern of corti...

Recent guidelines indicate that pregnant women with subclinical hypothyroidism (SCH, TSH above the pregnancy-related reference range where available, or ≧2.5 mU/l) should be treated with thyroxine. We aimed to determine the frequency of overt hypothyroidism (OH; TSH>5 mU/l) and SCH (TSH >2.5 but <5 mU/l) in pregnancy, and to examine how many are diagnosed with thyroid problems after pregnancy. Four thousand three hundred women were recruited between 2007 and...

Evidences for a functional link between insulin receptor (IR) and β2-adrenergic receptor (β2AR) exist in the mouse heart and in retina and are correlated with the cardiovascular dysfunction under insulin-resistant states1 and a diabetic retinopathy phenotype2. In our recent study we showed that i) IR coexpression reduced β2AR surface expression and accelerated its internalization, ii) provided evidence for d...

Introduction: Bisphosphonate therapy (BPT) reduces osteoclast activity and may be associated with adynamic bone turnover. The extent of suppression of bone turnover and its determinants are unclear.Methods: Markers of bone metabolism were evaluated in 15 children (9M/6F) receiving cyclical BPT intravenously for osteoporosis. The median age at first biochemical assessment was 10.8 years (0.16, 16.3). Serum type I collagen cross-linked C-telopeptide (CTX),...

Background: There are limited data in paediatric population on the association between vitamin D deficiency/treatment and glucose/insulin metabolism.Objective and hypotheses: This study aimed to investigate the effect of vitamin D therapy on glucose homeostasis, insulin resistance and bone turnover, in children with vitamin D deficiency.Method: 22 children aged 3 months to 10 years (nine males) who were diagnosed with vitamin D def...

Functional interplay between different classes of receptors has emerged as a notable factor of cellular response in health and disease. One of the most prominent examples of cross-talk involves the regulation of glucose metabolism, a major regulatory function under the influence of both insulin receptor (IR) and β2-adrenergic receptor (β2-AR) representing the receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) and the seven transmembrane receptors (7TMRs) respecti...

Background: 25-hydroxycholecalciferol (25(OH)D) deficiency is prevalent in the Scottish paediatric population. Paediatric oncology patients are at even higher risk of becoming deficient because they spend more time indoor, often have an inadequate dietary intake and increased 25(OH)D catabolism during treatment. We aimed to assess 25(OH)D and parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels before and after supplementation in Scottish children with cancer.Methods: Plasm...

Background: Guillain-Barré syndrome is a rare but very serious autoimmune disorder and it’s caused by the immune led demyelination of the peripheral nervous system. The symptoms are mainly weakness and numbness, but can also consist in severe respiratory failure due to paralysis. The treatment consist in administration of intravenous immunoglobulins (IVIGs) which shorten the duration of disease.Case presentation: A 67 year-old m...

Introduction: In children undergoing investigation of testicular function the relationship between serum anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) and the testosterone response to hCG stimulation test (HST) is unclear.Methods: 71 children (three females and 68 males) with a median age of 1.08 years (range: 0.003, 14.3) were investigated for suspected DSD by AMH on D1 and testosterone on D1 and D4, before and after 3-day HST. Of these children, 27 had an addition...

Peer Review programmes (PRP) help organisations to improve the quality of clinical services in a developmental and supportive way. The West Midlands Paediatric diabetes network (WMPDN) consists of 15 National Health Service (NHS) Trusts looking after 2800 children (aged 0–18 years). 2010/2011 National Paediatric diabetes audit (NPDA) data showed that the median HBA1c achieved in the region was 69 mmol/mol. In order to improve the metabolic control and quality of care, the...