Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: A rare cause of hypoglycemia is non-islet cell tumor hypoglycemia (NICTH), a paraneoplastic syndrome caused by tumoral overexpression of insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF-2) and pro-IGF-2.Case presentation: : A 57-year old woman presented with odd behavior each morning that improved after breakfast and extensive weight loss (13 kg in 3 years). The patient was hypoglycemic (2.6 mmol/l) with low insulin levels (<1.39 pmol/l) and C-peptide...

Background and aims: Low levels of testosterone and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in obese men are both linked to the metabolic syndrome, but the independent association between testosterone and NAFLD needs to be elucidated. In this cross-sectional analysis the association between total testosterone (total T) and calculated free testosterone (cFT) on the one hand and NAFLD, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and fibrosis on the other hand was investigated in obes...

Introduction: Melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R) is a G-protein-coupled receptor expressed in regions of the hypothalamus regulating appetite and energy expenditure. Extensive evidence from genetic and biological studies show that MC4R is a key player in the homeostatic regulation of body weight. MC4R loss of function (LoF) variants are the most common cause of monogenic obesity. We have identified 13 heterozygous MC4R variants in patients with obesity at our academic Obesity Cent...

Background: Obesity (BMI< 30 kg/m2) is a chronic and progressive disease, that is associated with many co-morbidities such as cardiovascular and psychiatric diseases, cancer, and arthritis. Lifestyle interventions are the cornerstone of obesity treatment, but when ineffective, anti-obesity pharmacotherapy could be added. In recent years, several anti-obesity agents have been approved, such as the glucagon-like peptide -1 (GLP-1) analogue liraglutide. Liraglutide...

Background and objective: Increased prescription of levothyroxine (LT4) has been observed in the USA and countries in Europe and has been related to increased thyroid function screening and a lower treatment threshold, increasing risk for overdiagnosis and overtreatment. We wanted to study the evolution of LT4 prescriptions in Belgium, and compare the use of anti-arrhythmic drugs (AAD) and bone-anti-resorptive drugs (BAD) between LT4-users and non-LT4-users.<p class="abste...

Inroduction: Primary hyperparathyroidism most commonly presents with hypercalcemia. Rarely, parathyroid apoplexy or haemorrhage, mimicking a thyroid bleeding cyst is the first presentation of a parathyroid adenoma(1,3).Case Report: A 55-year-old woman presented to the ENT department with a sudden onset painful goiter. Ultrasound revealed a sharply defined hypoechogenic nodule in the right thyroid lobe measuring 24.1 x 17.8 x 18.2 mm. The patie...

Background: A common request at an endocrine outpatient clinic is to rule out acromegaly in a patient with acromegaloid features. It is important to do so, since the excessive excretion of growth hormone can result in various serious comorbidities. But when growth hormone-IGF-1 axis abnormalities are excluded, the physician faces a diagnostic dilemma. Here we provide a systematic approach to these patients.Methods: We present a case series of patients vi...

Rationale: A history of optic chiasm compression in patients treated for sellar tumors is associated with alterations in sleep-wake rhythm. The optic chiasm contains axons of intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) that mediate photoentrainment of the suprachiasmatic nucleus. Compression could disrupt this entrainment leading to desynchronization with the 24-hour light-dark cycle. The post-illumination pupil response (PIPR) after blue light exposure is a u...

Background: Obesity associates with co-morbidities as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Obese men often present with low testosterone (T) levels. As sex steroids undergo hepatic metabolization and their serum levels depend on hepatic sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) secretion, NAFLD could contribute to this phenomenon. Previous studies however were contradictory and not based on state-of-the-art technology as mass spectrometry or biopsy-proven NAFLD.<p class="a...

Introduction: Osteoporosis and fractures are common in liver disease and fracture incidence increases after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). The value of bone turnover markers (BMTs) in the prediction of bone loss and fracture risk pre- and post-OLT is not known.Study design: The BMTs P1NP, osteocalcin, BALP and CTX were measured initially or in Biobank stored sera at screening and at 3, 6 and 12 months post-OLT in consecutive OLT recipients betwe...