Endocrine Abstracts

Cortisol and cortisone are interconverted by type 1 and type 2 11ßhydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11ßHSD) isoenzymes. The type 1 isoenzyme is a widely expressed reductase that converts cortisone to cortisol regulating glucocorticoid tissue exposure. Its activity is inhibited by GH and IGF-I, being increased in GH deficiency (GHD) and decreased in acromegaly. In our experience rhGH therapy unmasked a central hypoadrenal state in adults with organic GHD, likely by normal...

Background: Many questions concerning polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) remain unsolved, such as the long term evolution of cardiovascular (CV) risk markers and the risk for CV events.Methods: A total of 119 PCOS patients diagnosed in 2009 by NIH criteria at our Unit were evaluated at baseline for cardiovascular risk markers (hypertension, diabetes mellitus-DM, dyslipidaemia, obesity, carotid intima media thickness-cIMT, and epicardial fat thickness-EFT) ...

Patients with craniopharyngioma (CP) are more often operated by transcranial route than patients with nonfunctioning pituitary adenoma (NFPA), have higher prevalence of pituitary deficiencies, are more obese and dyslipidemic and have a higher mortality rate. A previous study in a large group of GHD subjects, showed that the effects of 2-year rhGH replacement are similar in patients operated for CP and in patients operated for NFPA, except for less reduction in fat mass in CP p...

A highly polymorphic microsatellite in the IGF1 gene promoter, composed of variable cytosine-adenine (CA) repeats (n=10–24) has been linked to IGF1 serum concentrations in normal, acromegalic and GHD subjects with conflicting results. Aim of this study was to investigate whether this polymorphism may influence the clinical and biochemical characteristics of adult patients with GHD (n=97). Moreover, the response to 12-month rhGH replacement in terms of IGF1 l...

Background: Several criteria (i.e., cortisol supprimibility after 1 mg overnight dexamethasone suppression test -F-dex-, low ACTH levels, high 24 h urinary free cortisol levels -UFC-, high midnight serum cortisol levels) have been used for defining SH. Nevertheless, a real gold standard combination of tests is lacking. Recently midnight salivary cortisol (MSC) has been described as a sensitive marker for the diagnosis of overt hypercortisolism, while the role of MSC in the dia...

Aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of rhGH treatment on glucose and lipid metabolism in in 26 patients (17M and 9F, age 47.0±11.1 years) with adult onset GH deficiency. Metabolic parameters (fasting glucose and insulin, glycated haemoglobin, lipid profile, body composition, OGTT) and indices of insulin resistance (IR) and sensitivity (IS), i.e. homeostasis model assessment (HOMA-IR and derived ISI-HOMA), quantitative insulin check index (QUICKI), ISI-composite, ...

Previous evidences have suggested that in adults with organic hypopituitarism the condition of GH deficiency (GHD) could mask the presence of other pituitary deficits. In our experience, both central hypothyroidism and hypoadrenalism were unmasked during rhGH therapy in adults with GHD due to central organic lesions. Few and conflicting information are available about the relationship among GHD, rhGH therapy and gonadal function. Aim of the present study was to investigate the...

Background: Many questions concerning polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) remain unsolved, such as the long-term evolution of cardiovascular (CV) risk markers and the risk for CV events.Methods: A total of 119 PCOS patients diagnosed in 2009 by NIH criteria at our Unit were evaluated at baseline for cardiovascular risk markers (hypertension, diabetes mellitus-DM, dyslipidaemia, obesity, carotid intima media thickness-cIMT, and epicardial fat thickness-EFT) ...

Generously supported by IPSEN)-->A highly polymorphic microsatellite in the IGF-I gene promoter composed of variable cytosine–adenine (CA) repeats (n=10–24) has been linked to IGF-I levels, risk of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases with conflicting results. Aim of this study was to investigate the impact of this polymorphism on the response to rhGH (mean dose 0.34±0.14 mg/day) in adult GH-deficient (GHD) pa...

Introduction: Double aneuploidy involving both sex and autosomal chromosomes (chr) is very rare, Down–Turner syndrome being the most frequent. Fourty-seven cases of Down–Turner mosaicism have been reported, only nine with a karyotype containing Y chr (phenotype: seven male, two ambiguous genitals).Case report: We describe a girl affected with Down-Turner syndrome. The cytogenetic analysis on peripheral lymphocytes, performed 2 months after birt...