Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: Our aim was to determine the comparable value of thyroglobulin in the washout of lymph node fine-needle aspirate (FNATg) and fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB).Materials and methods: We included 29 patients (37 FNAB) with history of differentiated thyroid cancer who underwent total thyroidectomy and were found to have suspicious cervical lymph nodes during follow-up. The referred population was evaluated on what concerns to gender, age, s...

Pregnancy complicated by pre-existing or gestational diabetes is associated with increased risk of maternal and fetal mortality and morbidity. The most common complication, macrosomia, occurs during the third trimester of pregnancy as a result of abnormal placental growth and increased transfer of nutrients to the fetus. We have previously demonstrated using an explant model of human placenta, that statins have the potential to limit placental growth. In this study we tested t...

Introduction: The association of autoimmune diseases in the same individual is common. It is well documented that Graves’ disease (GD) is associated to various autoimmune diseases, including: pernicious anemia, vitiligo, type 1 diabetes, Addison’s disease, systemic sclerosis, myasthenia gravis, Sjogren’s syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus. In addition, primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) may be associated with rheumatoid arthritis, Sjogr...

Introduction: Von Hippel-Lindau disease (VHLD) is a rare autosomal-dominant syndrome, characterized by the development of multiple cysts and tumours, namely retinal and central nervous system hemangioblastomas, renal cell carcinoma (RCC), phaeochromocytoma, pancreatic endocrine tumours (PET) and endolymphatic sac tumours.Most germinal mutations are missense, related to a high risk for presenting phaechromocytoma (specially if Arg167Trp mutation im...

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a clustering of cardio-metabolic risk factors (hyperglycemia, hypertension, dyslipidemia, visceral fat accumulation) that is also associated with hypogonadism and erectile dysfunction (ED). The study was aimed at clarifying the relationships among MetS, hypogonadism, and ED, we developed an animal model of MetS.Methods: Male rabbits fed a high-fat diet (HFD), with or without testosterone (T) supplementation, were compared wit...

In male, lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) have been associated, beside benign prostatic hyperplasia, to some unexpected co-morbidities, such as hypogonadism, obesity and metabolic syndrome, which are essentially characterized by an unbalance between circulating androgens and estrogens. Within the bladder, LUTS have been linked to overactivity of the RhoA/ROCK pathway. Here we investigate the effects of changing sex steroids on bladder smooth muscle. The effects of androgens...

Introduction: High-resolution US and US FNA are techniques of great relevance in the evaluation of thyroid nodules. They are being used much more often by endocrinologists all over the world. In our Endocrinology Department, we started them in 2006; since then they have been progressively amplified. We present our results of US FNA performed from January 2007 until December 2009.Patients and methods: Two thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven FNA were ...

According to the novel concept bone remodeling is centrally regulated (CNS). Leptin the adipocyte derived hormone acts on hypothalamus and by increasing sympathetic activity acts on osteoblasts to regulate bone formation. In patients with schizophrenia several factors have influence on bone metabolism. Schizophrenia per se, as a disease of central nervous system is associated with increased occurence of osteoporosis. Hyperprolactinemia as consequence of antipsychotic tr...

Spontaneous subarahnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is a recently identified risk factor for hipopituitarism, especially growth hormone (GH) and corticotroph deficiencies. The aim of this study is to perform the initial screening procedure to identify the patients with increased risk of neuroendocrine dysfunction after SAH in the chronic phase and to identify the possible predictor(s) for neuroendocrine dysfunction. Ninety-one patients (30 males, 61 females), age between 19 and 69 years ...

One of the proposed mechanisms responsible for Diabetes mellitus (DM)-associated erectile (ED) dysfunction is overactivity of RhoA/ROCK signalling. Because statins may decrease RhoA activation, we investigated whether atorvastatin ameliorated DM-induced ED in alloxan-treated (100 mg/kg) rabbits (in vitro studies) and streptozotocin-treated (STZ, 50 mg/kg) rats (in vivo studies). A subgroup of diabetic animals received atorvastatin 5 mg/kg per daily 2 weeks before...