Endocrine Abstracts

John Connell, MRC Blood Pressure Group, Glasgow, UK AbstractJohn Connell graduated in medicine from Glasgow in 1977. After initial training in endocrinology, he was appointed as a Clinical Scientist to the MRC Blood Pressure Unit, Western infirmary, Glasgow in 1983. He held an MRC Travelling Fellowship in the Howard Florey Institute for Experimental Physiology and Medicine from 1987, working with Professor John Coghlan...

J Connell, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom Abstract John Connell graduated in medicine from the University of Glasgow (with commendation) in 1977. After initial general medical training he was appointed Registrar in Endocrinology in the Western Infirmary, Glasgow; in 1983 he became Clinical Scientist within the MRC Blood Pressure Unit and Senior Registrar in Endocrinology. In 1986 he was awarded a ...

A 24-year-old male was referred to endocrinology with multiple severe atraumatic vertebral fractures. In the preceding 10 years the patient had experienced a bimalleolar ankle fracture and numerous metacarpal and metatarsal breakages unrelated to trauma. There was no family history of osteoporosis and examination did not reveal any abnormalities in scleral colour, stature, dentition or facial/thoracic morphology. Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry demonstrated severe densitometr...

A 29 year old woman with multiple sclerosis and no history of thyroid dysfunction was referred to endocrinology with T3 thyrotoxicosis (TSH <0.01 mU/l, fT4 20.7 pmol/l, T3 2.9 nmol/l). She had received monoclonal alemtuzumab therapy 9 months prior. This hyperthyroid phase was short lived and in the absence of anti-thyroid medication developed symptomatic hypothyroidism within 2 months of referral (TSH 52.9 mU/l, T4 <5 pmol/l, T3 0.8 nmol/l). Thyroid receptor antibodies...

A 53 year old male with a history of polysubstance abuse was admitted to A&E, having been found unconscious in the community with a blood glucose level of 1.2 mmol/l. Despite intramuscular glucagon and intravenous 20% dextrose administration, his blood glucose was confirmed to be 2.6 mmol/l on arrival in A&E. Neuroglycopaenia was refractory to multiple dextrose boluses and only stabilised following a continuous 20% 125 ml/hr dextrose infusion. Following admission to th...

Background: People with diabetes account for 15–20% of total inpatients in Scottish hospitals. Provision of specialised diabetes care is integral in minimising length of stay and diabetes-related complications in such patients. Consequently, inpatient diabetes teams have been implemented throughout the UK as recommended by the Joint British Diabetes Societies.Methods: The amalgamation of several Glasgow hospitals into a single large teaching hospita...

A 77 year old female was referred to endocrinology with an incidental finding of hypophosphataemia (0.26 mmol/l) on routine bloods. She described a slight unsteadiness on her feet, but denied bone pain or overt muscle weakness. Past medical history included Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, a left humeral fragility fracture and the subsequent diagnosis of osteoporosis 2 years previously. At presentation the corrected calcium was slightly elevated (2.64 mmol/l), which normalised when r...

Background: Radioactive iodine (RAI) is a safe and effective treatment for management of hyperthyroidism caused by Graves’ disease and multinodular goitres. However, patient engagement with this therapy is limited by concerns regarding significant weight gain following treatment. We therefore aimed to audit weight changes in individuals receiving RAI within our service and identify factors that may influence this outcome.Met...

Aldosterone has assumed increasing importance as a major cardiovascular risk factor. This is illustrated by the positive correlation between plasma aldosterone levels and blood pressure in a number of large population surveys, and the finding that approximately 10% of patients with high blood pressure have inappropriate aldosterone levels in relation to renin, consistent with primary aldosteronism. Evidence also supports the notion that aldosterone exerts particularly deleteri...

Primary aldosteronism is the most common secondary cause of hypertension. Less than 50% of patients with the disorder have a solitary aldosterone producing adenoma. In the most common presentation, patients present with bilateral hyper-secretion of aldosterone. The aetiology of this is uncertain. Studies within our own group have suggested that there is an underlying genetic predisposition to develop hypertension with a raised aldosterone to renin ratio (ARR) associated with v...