Endocrine Abstracts

Objectives: Reducing length of inpatient stay following trans-sphenoidal pituitary adenectomy (TSA) could create significant financial saving for the NHS. We assessed early complication rates post-TSA to determine feasibility of early hospital discharge (3 days) post-TSA.Methods: We identified retrospectively 60 patients who underwent TSA at the John Radcliffe Hospital. These consisted of patients with a pre-operative confirmed diagnosis of non-functioni...

Steroid replacement is life-saving in patients with steroid axis deficiency; education surrounding steroid replacement is vital in their management.We organised ‘Steroid Replacement Education Days’ for patients and their family members/carers to help enhance their knowledge on steroids and intercurrent illness. Lectures detailed manifestations, causes, management of steroid deficiency and the practical issues surrounding steroid replacement. Th...

Introduction: Addison’s disease (AD) is a rare condition (reported prevalence of 40–110 per million) that requires prompt recognition and optimal management to prevent the risks associated with cortisol deficiency.Aim: To assess the prevalence, presentation and clinical course of patients diagnosed with AD in the geographical area of Banbury in Oxfordshire.Patients and methods: Notes of subjects with AD currently register...

Introduction: Cushing’s disease (CD) is a rare condition, associated with significant morbidities and potentially fatal, if untreated.Objective: To assess the long-term morbidities in a large series of patients with CD during a prolonged follow-up period.Patients and methods: All subjects with CD who presented/followed-up in our Department between 01/1967 and 06/2009 were studied. All information was collected as documented in...

Introduction: The concept of life-long medical therapy for acromegaly has recently been challenged. Hormonal remission for up to 48 months after stopping somatostatin analogues in acromegalic patients has recently been reported. Herein, we present a further case showing the longest remission yet in growth hormone levels after somatostatin analogue treatment.Case: In 1987, a 43 year old man was diagnosed with acromegaly [nadir GH on oral glucose tolerance...

Background: Serum biomarkers which correlate with pituitary tumour growth would be valuable in the treatment and follow-up of patients with pituitary adenomas, particularly non-functioning adenomas. Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) mRNA is upregulated in almost all tumours, whereas matrix metalloproteinases 2 and 9 (MMP 2 and 9) have been demonstrated to be important in tumour vascularisation and invasion, particularly in prolactinomas.Aim: The ...

Objective: Our objective was to examine recurrence of hyperprolactinaemia following discontinuation of dopamine agonist (DA) therapy in patients with macroprolactinoma who have had treatment for 3–15 years.Methods: We identified retrospectively adult patients (n=15) attending OCDEM (Churchill Hospital, Oxford, UK) with a confirmed diagnosis of macroprolactinoma (established during the last 25 years), who had been treated with DA therapy for a...

Aim: In normal men testosterone levels fall with age. We wished to assess the efficacy and safety of Nebido in men over the age of 60 years in order to assess dose frequency and other potential complications.Subjects and methods: Ten men over 60 years of age (range 60–77 median 64) with primary or secondary hypogonadism were treated with Nebido 1000 mg i.m. Each was given a loading dose of two injections 6 weeks apart (our normal protocol for all pa...

Background: TSH-receptor stimulating antibodies are implicated in the pathophysiology of Graves’ disease (GD). The detection of TSH-receptor antibodies (TSHR-Abs) is routinely performed by assays measuring thyrotropin-binding inhibitor immunoglobulin and new generation assays are reported to have high sensitivity and specificity in GD. The differentiation of hyperthyroidism (GD or toxic multinodular goiter (TMG) or toxic adenoma (TA)) is important for planning the therapy...

Background: Levothyroxine is the standard treatment for central hypothyroidism (CH). Studies assessing the optimal dose are limited and include subjects with other untreated pituitary hormone deficits, affecting the interpretation of results. A reliable comparison with the dose used in primary hypothyroidism (PH) has not been reported.Aims: To evaluate daily and body-weight-adapted levothyroxine dose (BWA-dose) in a cohort of patients with CH on appropri...