Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: Juvenile thyrotoxicosis is treated with anti-thyroid drugs using a block and replace or dose titration regimen. There is a high rate of relapse and majority require definitive treatment with surgical or radio-iodine ablation. Increasingly radio-iodine therapy is being used in children, particularly in the USA, but experience with this is limited in the UK. In our unit we have an experienced paediatric thyroid surgeon and we have always carried out surgery in chil...

Introduction: Improved survival in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) has highlighted the importance of recognising and preventing skeletal morbidity. This study aims to assess bone health of ALL patients and compare this to other paediatric patients with chronic illness.Methods: Dual energy absorptiometry (DXA) scan results for total body bone mineral density (TBBMD), lumbar spine bone mineral apparent density (LSBMAD) and total body less hea...

Introduction: Adrenal hypoplasia congenita (AHC) is often difficult to differentiate from congenital adrenal hyperplasia in the early stages of life. Both can present with severe salt-losing crises, and in some cases, even sudden, unexpected death. In particular there tend to be no abnormalities of the genitilia in AHC thus delaying a possible diagnosis. In the autosomal recessive form of AHC, the absence of a recognised single gene mutation can cause significant difficulties ...

Background: Patients with isolated growth hormone deficiency (GHD) will routinely have an MRI scan of the pituitary and brain to assess pituitary size and presence of any intracranial lesions. The result may change the threshold for monitoring for further hormone deficiencies. However the test may also detect unexpected or unrelated abnormalities.Aim: To review the incidence of normal and abnormal MRI scans in children with a diagnosis of isolated GHD.</...

Objective: To analyze the effect of DM on frequency and severity of HE in patients with liver cirrhosis.Methods: Three hundred and fifty-two patients with liver cirrhosis were prospectively assessed for severity of liver disease and presence of DM in a multicenter study. The presence and severity of HE was determined using West Haven criteria. Kolmogorov-Smirnov Goodness-of-Fit Test was used to check normality of continuous variables. Modified Child Pugh...

Introduction: Osteonecrosis is an increasingly common complication in young people treated for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL). This is likely to be due to the now universal use of high dose steroids.Aim: The aim of this study was to obtain information on prevalence, current UK management and long-term outcomes of patients.Methods: We retrospectively collated data on patients with osteonecrosis for the most recently completed t...

Background: Congenital hypothyroidism (CHT) may be viewed as a relatively easy condition to diagnose and treat. However, for the parents who are contacted with the neonatal screening results the news can be devastating. The quality of information provided at diagnosis is variable, and there are few support groups they can turn to. Many seek information online before meeting a paediatrician.Methods: The British Thyroid Foundation in conjunction with our r...

Introduction: Phytoestrogens are derived from plants that are structurally and functionally similar to oestrogens. Their health benefits are widely extolled, although excessive consumption in children may cause adverse effects.Case 1: A 5.7-year old female presented with a one-month history of breast development and a 3-day history of vaginal bleeding. Prior to presentation, she was taking a health drink containing fennel and sesame seeds, in addition to...

Introduction: There has been a joint transition clinic in our tertiary centre for over 10 years. We have recently undertaken a questionnaire based review of this service.Methodology: The questionnaire comprised two components: what the young adults understood about their condition and the medications they were currently taking using both a written response and a score of 0–10 for how confident they felt in this. They were also asked to complete a co...

Introduction: Children with Laron’s syndrome have a classical phenotype which includes extreme short stature and mid facial hypoplasia. It is biochemically characterised by high levels of GH and very low IGF1 levels. These children fulfil the criteria for recombinant IGF1 (rhIGF1, Mecasermin) therapy, however this has to be balanced with possible side effects. This study looked at the short term efficacy and safety profile of six children (five males) with Laron’s sy...