Endocrine Abstracts

Background: A detailed assessment of children’s diabetes services across 21 units in the Y&H SHA identified a significant variation in care with the number of children with an HbA1c <7.5% ranging from 3 to 30%. This variation could not be explained by demographics or resource.Methods: Agreement was obtained from three units in Yorkshire to pilot a Peer review visit in conjunction with the national Cancer Peer Review Team and too develop the ...

Introduction: Currently group education facilitation skills are not part of foundation nurse, medical or dietetic training. Additionally there is no nationally recognised evidence based structured education programme for paediatrics which meet the DoH criteria (2005). Consequently paediatric diabetes teams cannot access group facilitation skills through programmes such as DAFNE and DESMOND in contrast to colleagues working with adults. A one day workshop on group facilitation ...

Introduction: The strong correlation between HbA1c and blood glucose (BG) has been recognised in many studies. We investigated this relationship using BG data from 119 children with diabetes, to better understand factors affecting HbA1c and characteristics of children with good versus poor control.Methods: BG data was obtained on 119 children over a 1-month period and on a subset of 43 children over three consecutive months using the Diasend System (Aide...

Background: A children’s diabetes network was established in late 2008 across the Y&H SHA. Following agreement from all units over 2009/10 it identified outcome measures and established policies leading to 2011 being a ‘Year of Action’ to produce significant improvement in services.Methods: All units were required to submit annually to the NDA and to complete an extended version of the 2008 Diabetes UK questionnaire on staffing. Data f...

There is a well-recognised association between Coeliac disease and type 1 diabetes (T1DM). Four of our 68 patients have both conditions (5.9%). We present three other patients with T1DM and GI disease – two inflammatory bowel disease (IBD=2.9%) and one primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) and IBD (=1.5%).Case 1: Sixteen years old male, with T1DM from 13-year-old, developed diarrhoea and abdominal pain with no weight loss or blood pr. Investigation s...

A 19-year-old student was referred with a history of increasing anxiety attacks, palpitations and breathlessness. Blood pressure and urinary catecholamine levels were elevated. MRI imaging confirmed a para-aortic paraganglionoma and MIBG scan highlighted bony metastases. The patient underwent surgery for the primary lesion and targeted MIBG therapy for metastases.Age of onset, malignant disease and metastases increase the likelihood of a genetic cause an...

A para 2+0 female, 11 weeks gestation presented with vaginal bleeding and hyper-emesis. An ultrasound scan showed a dichorionic pregnancy with one viable foetus and a hydatiform mole. β-human chorionic gonadotrophin (β-hCG) level was elevated at 159845 U/L and subsequent thyroid biochemistry revealed hyperthyroidism. Serum thyrotrophin (TSH) was suppressed at <0.05 mU/L (NR 0.2–4.5), with a FT4 37 pmol/L (NR 9–24), and Free T3 of 17.8 nmol/L (NR 2.6&#15...

The active form of vitamin D, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (1,25D3) is a potent antiproliferative agent with putative applications in the treatment of common cancers. However, doses of 1,25D3 required to achieve tangible anticancer responses also stimulate unwanted calciotropic effects. Data suggest that this is due, in part, to acquired resistance to 1,25D3 in cancer cells, particularly in more aggressive tumours. To investigate this fu...

Transdifferentiation of non-endocrine pancreatic cells towards a beta-cell phenotype may enable insulin independence in many individuals from a single donor. This will be dependent on near-physiological proinsulin biosynthesis, processing, storage and secretion. The aim of this study was to fully characterise endocrine potential of pancreatic acinar cells before and after transdifferentiation.Expression of exocrine/endocrine markers in the AR42J rat acin...

Transdifferentiation of non-endocrine pancreatic cells towards a beta-cell phenotype may enable insulin independence in many individuals from a single donor. This will be dependent on near-physiological proinsulin biosynthesis, processing, storage and secretion. The aim of this study was to fully characterise endocrine potential of pancreatic acinar cells before and after transdifferentiation.Expression of exocrine/endocrine markers in the AR42J rat acin...