Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: Intestinal cholesterol absorption is known to be important in post-prandial lipid levels, and implicated in the development of vascular disease. This study evaluated the effect of intestinal gene expression on markers of early vascular disease in a cohort of diabetic and non-diabetic subjects.Methods: Subjects were identified from routine upper GI lists and enrolled as per local ethics approval. Intestinal gene expression was measured on du...

Overt hypothyroidism (OH) and more controversially subclinical hypothyroidism (SCH) are associated with abnormal lipid metabolism and endothelial dysfunction under fasting conditions. Little data exists regarding the metabolic and vascular effects of OH or SCH under postprandial conditions.We aimed to characterize postprandial metabolism with emphasis on intestinally derived lipoproteins, HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C) and endothelial function in patients with ...

Context: Growth of meningiomas has been previously described in patients receiving oestrogen/progestogen therapy.Methods: Case history, laboratory findings, imaging and histology are discussed.Case history: A 45-year-old woman with a known history of 21-hydroxyase deficiency (of the non-salt wasting variety) and long-standing non-adherence with corticosteroid therapy presented to the Endocrine Clinic for follow-up care. She complai...

There is an increase in cardiovascular risk factors in polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) compared with BMI matched controls. Almost all women with PCOS are insulin resistant and increased cardiovascular risk is commonly attributed to insulin resistance (IR). However, it is unclear if cardiovascular risk differs in women with PCOS compared to equally insulin resistant women. We performed a case–control study (n=56 pairs) of women with PCOS (NIH criteria) compared t...

Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) have an increased prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors. Insulin resistance (IR) is believed to be an important factor in the pathogenesis of both PCOS and cardiovascular disease and thus provides a plausible link between these two conditions. An exaggerated post-prandial triglyceride (TG) response is thought to be one of the mechanisms through which IR is associated with atherosclerosis. The aim of this study was to compare fast...

Partial lipodystrophy syndromes are characterised by a selective paucity of subcutaneous adipose tissue on the trunk and limbs but excessive fat on the face, neck, supraclavicular areas and pelvis. Metabolic complications include insulin resistance and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). There have been no previous reports of genital disfiguremment in these conditions.We present the case of a 27 years old female, who initially presented to the gynaecology ...

Malignant glucagonomas are slow-growing tumours which more commonly cause symptoms through glucagon hypersecretion than through effects of tumour bulk. The glucagonoma syndrome includes necrolytic migratory erythema (NME), diabetes mellitus, weight loss, anaemia, chelitis, venous thrombosis and neuropsychiatric symptoms. The syndrome probably results from unrestrained proteolysis1, and rapid consumption of B-vitamins through accelerated intermediate metabolism2...

We aimed to establish the extent of adult cystic fibrosis-related diabetes (CFRD) in Ireland, and examine the differences between patients with CFRD and those with normal glucose handling.We conducted a retrospective analysis of patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) who attend the national referral centre for adult CF. Data including lung spirometry, sputum microbiology, bone mineral density and genotype were collected. Patients were diagnosed as having CFR...

Where screening for macroprolactin takes place, laboratories routinely rely on treatment of sera with polyethylene glycol (PEG) to distinguish macroprolactinaemia from true hyperprolactinaemia. However, PEG causes significant interference in some immunoassays and furthermore leads to co-precipitation of a variable amount of monomeric prolactin in addition to macroprolactin in treated sera. The aim of this study was to assess the specificity and clinical utility of alternative ...

Growth hormone (GH) and testosterone are both potent anabolic hormones, but it is not known whether they interact to positively regulate protein metabolism. To address this question, we have carried out two studies, in which we have investigated the impact of GH alone, testosterone alone and combined GH+testosterone, on whole body protein metabolism in hypopituitary men.In the first study, ten subjects received either GH (1.5 units daily) or GH+testosterone (250 milligrams...