Endocrine Abstracts

BackgroundPreoperative localisation of parathyroid adenomas may allow more limited neck exploration. Ultrasound is the least expensive imaging technique available. However, correct localisation may be difficult. We have undertaken a study to see whether asking one radiologist (SM) to perform all scans offers a diagnostic advantage.MethodAll patients undergoing surgery for primary hyperparathyroidism since Ju...

Bone turnover decreases markedly following both oral glucose and feeding. The mechanism for this is unclear. The aim of this study was to examine whether insulin itself could be responsible for the effect of feeding. We examined the acute effect of a hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp (E) and stepwise hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemic clamp (H) on bone turnover and PTH. Sixteen healthy male volunteers (mean age 22) attended on two occasions at 0800 after an overnight fast. The stud...

We report a 36 year old woman of African origin with a background of HIV and previous AIDS defining pulmonary tuberculosis. The patient has been well on highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART) since May 2000. She presented in March 2001 with a four weeks history of fatigue, weight loss, palpitations, polyuria and weakness. Her mother had type 2 diabetes. There is no family history of thyroid disease. Examination showed a thyrotoxic state, a smooth diffuse goitre and prox...

We conducted a retrospective notes analysis to determine the incidence, prevalence and predictive factors of idiopathic postprandial hypoglycaemia (IPH) in a population of 230 000 served by our Hospital.Using the Biochemistry Database all patients who had a 5-hour oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) from 1995 to 2001 were identified, and their notes were reviewed. Demographic, clinical and biochemical data were recorded for each patient. The latter includ...

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the commonest cause of anovulatory infertility in women, but its aetiology is poorly understood. There is evidence for a primary disorder of androgen secretion, which has its origins before puberty, but it is not clear how this may cause the characteristic ovarian abnormalities. We have developed an ovine model for PCOS to explore possible differences between the small preantral follicles of androgenised female lambs with those of normal ova...

Ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency (OTCD) is the most common urea cycle disorder (UCD) with a prevalence of one in 60-70,000 in humans. It is mainly caused by mutations in the OTC gene, which encodes the enzyme ornithine transcarbamylase. Patients with OTCD present disturbed urea cycle function and ammonia accumulation in the bloodstream, downstream leading to a range of symptoms, including developmental delay, cerebral oedema, coma, and death. We developed a human...

Aims: Within Imperial College Healthcare Trust, St Mary’s Hospital has a large one-stop shop thyroid service. On average, 700 encounters have been recorded per annum in the St Mary’s thyroid nurse-led service since its inception in June 2017. We aimed to critically evaluate the role of the specialist nurse within safe and robust monitoring clinical parameters, to determine the conditions managed in the nurse-led service and assess attendance rate.<p class="abstex...

Lactation promotes infant development and confers long-term health benefits to mothers and infants. However, the endocrine and paracrine mechanisms mediating milk synthesis remain to be fully elucidated. Hormones such as prolactin and progesterone trigger the onset of lactation, whereas local mammary factors are considered to play a greater role in the maintenance of milk synthesis. We hypothesised that mammary epithelial cytokines are required for established lactation, and u...

A 24 year old female presented to her general practitioner with general malaise. She had a genetic diagnosis of hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer (Lynch syndrome), with no colonic lesions detected on screening. Routine biochemistry revealed a potassium of 2.1mmol/l, requiring admission for urgent investigation and intravenous replacement. Further clinical assessment found a past history of severe acute thoracic back pain (3-months prior to presentation), weight gain a...

Background: Increased cardiovascular mortality and evidence of atherosclerosis have been reported in patients with pituitary disorders, irrespective of type of pituitary hormone deficiency. However, there are few data on cardiovascular events in patients with secondary adrenal failure due to pituitary disease compared with those who have primary adrenal failure.Subjects: 2052 patients with primary adrenal failure were compared with 20 366 matched control...