Endocrine Abstracts

GH replacement has been offered to children with GH deficiency (GHD) for 40 years; with time, however, and the increasing availability of recombinant derived GH, the threshold cut-off used to define GH status utilising provocative tests has been relaxed, leading to diagnostic dilemmas; this is particularly relevant as the growth velocity of a child, short from almost any cause, can be improved if he/she receives enough GH.The advent of adult GH replacement paradoxically is...

Steve Shalet, Dept of Endocrinology, Christie Hospital, Manchester, UK AbstractAfter completing a BSc in Physiology at London University in 1966, I qualified in medicine at the Royal London Hospital in 1969. Junior hospital medical training posts in London and Bristol were followed by an appointment as Research Fellow in Endocrinology at the Christie Hospital, Manchester in 1974....

The heterogeneity of human morbid obesity is becoming increasingly apparent with a growing number of monogenic disorders leading to profound dysregulation of body fat mass being identified. Congenital leptin deficiency is associated with extreme hyperphagia and hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. Three subjects with this condition are currently undergoing therapeutic trial of recombinant human leptin with markedly beneficial effects on appetite and weight. Leptin treatment has perm...

With the changes in laboratory techniques affecting many disciplines, this is a short introduction to the variety of sales-based careers available in the UK biotechnology sector. The talk incorporates different companies, changing market trends and products and my own 'out of laboratory' experience of working in the biotech commercial world. Currently I work for Silicon Genetics, an American company with a small European operation based in the UK. I am their UK Regional Sales ...

After a period in research and academia, it is difficult to envisage an alternative career. However, there are a surprising number of opportunities available although it does require some determination to discover them. One of these is to join a medical education, or communications agency. These companies work mainly with pharmaceutical companies and generally cover a range of therapeutic areas. There are many such agencies ranging from those with a small number of employees t...

We recently observed that serum interleukin-18 and tumour necrosis factor alpha concentrations are positively associated with obesity and increased serum triglyceride concentration in man.The objective of this study was to find out if these cytokines were associated with hyperglyceamia,hyperlipidaemia,hypertension and hyperurcaemia in an adult population.The study population consisted of 570 apparently healthy adults aged 15 years and over.Systolic and diastolic blood pressure...

Recently,we reported that obesity is an independent risk factor for lipid peroxidation in man and hypothesised that cytokines might play a part in this.The objective of this study was to find out if the serum concentrations of interleukin-18 and tumour necrosis factor alpha were associated with body mass index and plama malondialdehyde concentration in healthy adults.The study population consisted of 570 adults aged 15 years and older.We determined their body weights and heigh...

A new role for the endocrine nurse within a multidisciplinary approach to neuro-endocrine tumours.Historically patients with neuroendocrine tumours have been looked after either by the gastrointestinal team, the oncologists or the endocrinologists. Here, we demonstrate the need for a multidisciplinary approach to managing these rare tumours and a new role for the endocrine nurse.Our newly evolved, multi-disciplinary neuroendocrine tumour (NET) clinic comprises an endoc...

Papillary carcinoma (PC) represents the most common malignancy of the thyroid gland. Therefore, the assessment of biopsies of thyroid nodules rests heavily on the identification of malignant from benign features. Unfortunately, up to 60% of biopsies are considered inadequate due to sampling artifact, insufficient material, or marked inter-observer variation. Proposed molecular markers of PC include HBME-1, specific cytokeratins such as CK19, and the tyrosine kinase receptor (r...

Patients with thyroid eye disease (TED) often appear distressed. It is probable that several factors contribute to their psychological state, but the predominant components seem to be alterations in visual function and abnormal facial appearance. It is well recognised that people with disfigurement encounter significant difficulties in social interaction. The altered appearance of a patient with TED may lead to a usually negative experience, followed by misinterpretation of th...