ESPE Abstracts

Background: Melanocortin 4 receptor (MC4R) deficiency is the commonest monogenic form of non-syndromic obesity. MC4R is a seven transmembrane G-protein coupled receptor implicated in central regulation of body weight. The loss-of-function mutations in MC4R gene will contribute to early-onset obesity associated with hyperinsulinemia, hyperphagia and “binge eating”. We aim to determine the prevalence of MC4R variants in a Pediatrics...

Introduction: Small for gestational age (SGA) is a common condition affecting around 10% of all newborns, and it is associated with an increased risk of short stature and other health problems later in life. Growth hormone deficiency (GHD) is a well-known cause of growth failure in children, and it is estimated to affect approximately 1 in 4.000-10.000 children. However, the prevalence of GHD in SGA children with short stature is not well established. Early de...

Indels are highly abundant in human genomes and have contributed massively to genome evolution. However, the role of indels and their underlined mechanisms of mutagenesis in Mendelian disorders still needs to be appreciated. To explore the contribution of indels in a monogenic disorder, we analyzed all indels already described in the AR gene, including three novel indels found in our cohort. We analyzed the indel distribution through the AR coding region, compared wit...

Introduction: ABCD syndrome is characterized by hypercalcemia, hypercalciuria, nephrocalcinosis, and renal impairment, generally under 4 years old. This is a rare cause of pediatric hypercalcemia with only 7 cases published, but it is believed to be underdiagnosed. The suspected mechanism would be associated with overexpression of transient receptor potential channels (TRP) that modulate intestinal absorption of calcium, since TRP-M2 is encoded on chromosome 2...

Introduction and Aims: Autosomal dominant hypocalcemia or type V Bartter syndrome is characterized by hypocalcemia, low parathyroid hormone (PTH), and calciuria, which marks its prognosis due to the risk of nephrocalcinosis. It is caused by activating mutations in the calcium-sensing receptor (CASR) gene (3q21.1), which is expressed in the parathyroid and renal tubules, causing salt and potassium loss, due to the inhibition of the ROMK and NKCC2 channels. We s...

Introduction: 46,XY gonadal dysgenesis (GD) represents a heterogeneous group of disorders/differences of sex development (DSD) characterized by abnormal gonadal development leading to a wide phenotypic spectrum. Variable degrees of external genitalia undervirilization are observed, ranging from micropenis to female-like genitalia and partially or fully-developed Mullerian derivatives.Case Report: A 6 years-old boy follow...

Introduction: No consensus on vitamin D (VitD) deficiency screening in children and adolescents exists.Aim: To evaluate a sample of patients in whom VitD dosing was performed and determine the rationale for this assessment.Methods: Retrospective, longitudinal study of pediatric patients, from a Portuguese tertiary hospital, who had at least two 25(OH)D level blood sampling between ...

There is still controversy about body composition after completion of growth hormone (GH) therapy in patients with GHD once final adult height has been reached.Objective: A cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluate body composition in males after GH therapy discontinuation, during the transition stage.Patients and Methods: 18 males with confirmation of persistent GHD (16.7-21.5 years) after G...

PLR-DTC patients defined as having a tumor grossly confined to the thyroid with minimal or no central lymph nodes comprises 40% of all pediatric DTC followed-up in our center. High-invasive molecular alterations (HIMA) have been reported recently in around 57% of these patients with a still not clear explanation on their influence in outcome.Objective: To report the characterization of a small group of PLR-DTC patients who were positive ...

Introduction: Papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) in the pediatric and young adult population presents contradictory features: it shows higher rates of multifocal disease, local and distant metastasis, and recurrence compared to adults, yet the overall 5-year survival rate remains exceptionally high at 98-100%. In children, RET/PTC rearrangements are the major somatic genetic alterations that drive the formation of PTC. On the other hand, mutations in <...