Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is often associated with male hypogonadism. The role of testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) in MetS has not been completely clarified.To systematically analyse the relationship between androgen levels and MetS we performed a review and meta-analyses of available prospective and cross-sectional studies. A specific meta-analysis on the metabolic effects of TRT in available randomised clinical trials (RCTs) was als...

Introduction: Although it is well established that all the aspects of male reproduction are hormonally regulated, the endocrine control of the ejaculatory reflex is still not completely clarified. Sex steroids, thyroid and pituitary hormones (oxytocin and prolactin) have been proposed to control the ejaculatory process at various levels, however, only a few reports are currently available. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the contribution of testosterone, TSH and pr...

Background: Patients with adrenal incidentalomas and possible autonomous cortisol secretion (pACS) suffer from a high rate of cardiovascular events and mortality. We have previously showed that left ventricular mass index (LVMi) is higher in patients with pACS, compared with patients with non-functioning adenomas (NFA). To date, the management of pACS is still controversial, with a lack of consensus regarding the benefits of surgery.Objectives: This pros...

Background: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) significantly impacts Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) and sexual function. The aim of this study was to evaluate sex differences in HRQoL and sexual function in patients with T2DM.Methods: We performed an ancillary study of RECOGITO trial (REmodelling in Diabetic CardiOmyopathy: Gender Response to PDE5i InhibiTOrs - NCT01803828). All patients completed the 36-item-Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36), assess...

Background: Overt hypercortisolism is highly associated with venous thromboembolism. Patients with Cushing’s syndrome (CS) typically show an alteration of the intrinsic coagulation pathway, especially an increase in factor VIII (f-VIII), and increased levels of coagulation inhibitors (i.e., antithrombin III) as a compensatory response. Mild autonomous cortisol secretion (MACS) has been variably associated with higher risk of cardiovascular events and mortality compared to...

Introduction: Immune tumor microenvironment plays a key role in tumors’ growth and metastatic spread, while its role in the heterogeneous field of neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs) remains unclear. There is evidence that tumor progression in NENs is promoted by an immunosuppressed microenvironment created by a plethora of infiltrating immune cells. Changes in circulating leukocyte and peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) subpopulations can mirror the local alteration of...

Case Summary: In May 2018, a 22-year-old man was admitted to the Emergency Room of Polyclinic Umberto I Hospital of Rome, because of progressive headaches and binocular diplopia. Brain MRI revealed a heterogeneous T1WI-hypointense and T2WI-hyperintense mass of 40x28x25 mm (CC, LL, AP) including calcification areas in the left paramedian region of the clivus invading the homolateral cavernous sinus. The patient underwent partial tumour resection via infratemporal approach and a...

Background: Patients with adrenal insufficiency (AI) require long-term glucocorticoid (GC) replacement therapy and generally show an increased prevalence of bone metabolism alterations. Only few data are available on bone safety of dual-release Hydrocortisone (DR-HC) therapy.Objective: To evaluate bone metabolism in both primary AI (PAI) and secondary AI (SAI) during long-term therapy with DR-HC.Methods: We studied patients with AI...

Background: Patients with Cushing’s syndrome (CS) typically show an alteration in the intrinsic coagulation pathway, leading to an increased risk of venous thromboembolism. Cortisol autonomy has been variably associated with higher risk of cardiovascular events and mortality compared to patients with non-functioning adrenal adenomas (NFA), particularly in women younger than 65 years. However, dedicated studies describing coagulation status in patients with adrenal inciden...

Introduction: In overweight and obesity energy unbalance is responsible for the accumulation of ectopic fat. Excess energy and metabolic alterations, namely insulin resistance, may favor ectopic fat depositions. However, the role played by dietary factors, especially the pro-inflammatory properties of dietary patterns, in ectopic fat storage is not thoroughly understood. The aim of our study was to investigate the association between the Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII) and di...