Endocrine Abstracts

Objectives: Visfatin and monocyte-chemoattractant-protein-1 (MCP-1) are elevated in cardiovascular pathologies, insulin-resistant and dysmetabolic states. Visfatin has been reported to exhibit pro-angiogenic actions in human endothelial cells by the induction of endothelial gelatinases and VEGF. Given MCP-1’s well described pro-angiogenic properties we sought to study the potential interaction between visfatin, MCP-1 and VEGF in human endothelial cells. More importantly, ...

Aim: Cardiovascular disease is more common in individuals with diabetes mellitus and obesity. Visfatin is elevated in obesity and T2DM; and thought to be an inflammatory mediator within atherosclerotic lesions inducing gelatinase activity, contributing to plaque destabilisation. We investigated the activation of NF-κB, a well-known pro-inflammatory transcription factor, by visfatin, in Human Endothelial Cells (EC).Research design and methods: We sta...

A 46-year-old lady presented with a short history of thirst and polyuria. She had a past history of hypertension. Diabetes mellitus was ruled out as she had normal blood glucose levels. She was found to be normocalcaemic but hypokalaemic. In view of the latter finding and her hypertension, her plasma renin activity and aldosterone was measured, and found to be 45 pmol/ml/hr and 410 pmol/l respectively (aldosterone:PRA ratio of 9.1). The diagnosis of secondary hyperaldosteronis...

PCOS is a disorder of chronically abnormal ovarian function and hyperandrogenism, and associated sub-fertility. Insulin resistance is an integral feature of PCOS, particularly in obese women, and non-pregnant women with PCOS exhibit many of the features of the metabolic syndrome, including disturbed lipid metabolism. Treatments to improve conception rates include lifestyle intervention and insulin-sensitising therapy. When a woman with PCOS becomes pregnant she is at increased...

We have previously described a series of patients who presented with clinical and biochemical features diagnostic of phaeochromocytoma but in whom catecholamine excess proved to be secondary to undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA). We describe here a prospective study of 30 patients presenting to the sleep clinic with OSA from whom 24 hour urine collections were analysed for catecholamines before and after treatment with continuous positive airways pressure (CPAP).<p...

We report the case of a 73-year-old Cypriot man with bilateral adrenal histoplasmosis. He had spent many years working in Southern Africa and had retired to Cyprus more than ten years ago. One year prior to diagnosis he underwent an elective cholecystectomy. Pre-operatively bilateral adrenal co-incidentalomas were noted on ultrasound and computed tomography (CT). Fine needle aspiration showed adipocytes within the gland and the patient had no further investigations at this tim...

Background: Patients with an elevated aldosterone renin ratio (ARR) should proceed for a confirmatory test to diagnose primary aldosteronism (PA) before undergoing further investigations such as CT imaging and adrenal venous sampling. The recent 2016 clinical guidelines have included a new recommendation: that in the setting of spontaneous hypokalaemia, undetectable plasma renin, and plasma aldosterone concentration (PAC) >20 ng/dl, patients may not require further confirm...

Background: Carbohydrate-restricted diets in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) are highly controversial. A commonly held concern is that a low carbohydrate diet may more readily result in conversion to diabetic ketoacidosis – one of the most severe complications of poorly managed T1DM. Of note, there is no clear evidence for this phenomenon. We evaluated metabolic profiles in patients with T1DM who had self-selected carbohydrate-restricted diets.<p clas...

Lactation is under the control of the anterior and posterior pituitary via prolactin and oxytocin release. A number of galactogogues, including dopamine antagonists, have been described and used with success in lactation induction. To date, there are no reports in the literature of their use in patients with panhypopituitarism. We present the case of a forty-year-old female known to endocrinology services with a background of anterior panhypopituitarism and AVP deficiency asso...

Background: Styrene and ethylbenzene (S/EB), the monomers found in polystyrene (PS) and polyethylene (PE), are known to continuously leach into the environment and food products. The prevalent use of hand sanitizers containing S/EB during the COVID-19 pandemic has heightened concerns about the health implications of S/EB exposure. Notably, the impact of S/EB exposure on the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and its interaction with genetic factors in the general populati...