ESPE Abstracts

Background: While the relationship between subclinical hypothyroidism and major depressive disorder (MDD) has been studied in adults in cross-sectional and prospective population-based studies, this has not yet been done in adolescents. However, since thyroid function and MDD risk are subjected to maturational processes and ramifications of illness duration over the life span, these findings may not readily transfer to adolescents.<stron...

Introduction: Reliable reference values for thyroid ultrasound measurements are essential to effectively guide individual diagnostics and direct health care measures at the population level, such as iodine fortification programs. However, the latest reference values for total thyroid volume (Tvol) provided by the WHO in 2004 are only applicable to the 6 to 12-year-old age group. Moreover, these values are derived from countries with a long history of iodine su...

Studies in adults provide convincing evidence of seasonal fluctuations in thyroid hormone levels. However, the evidence in children and adolescents is less consistent, potentially due to unaddressed confounding and the use of statistical methods not well-suited to investigate this specific issue. Using the baseline data from KiGGS (German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents), an analysis was conducted among 6,071 participants aged 6 to 17 years...

Introduction: Limited research has focused on the potential connection between thyroid function and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), particularly beyond prenatal effects. The few studies addressing children and adolescents have important methodological shortcomings, mainly when seeking to establish causality. To clarify this relationship, a combined epidemiological and genetic approach was adopted to overcome the methodological limitations of e...

Background: Bardet-Biedl syndrome (BBS) is a rare autosomal recessive inherited ciliopathy with pathogenic variants in at least 26 BBS genes. It affects multiple organs including kidney and liver; however, organ involvement differs widely regarding extent and time of first manifestation. Structural renal anomalies are an early feature with a frequency of > 50% and end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) cumulates to 25% in adolescence. Early-onset hyperphagia-assoc...

Background: A fair number of epidemiological studies suggest that age at menarche (AAM) is associated with depression, but the reported effect sizes are small, and there is evidence of residual confounding. Moreover, previous Mendelian randomization (MR) studies to avoid inferential problems inherent to epidemiological studies have provided mixed findings.Methods: To clarify the causal relationship between age at menarch...

Background: There is preliminary evidence that adrenal steroids other than cortisol may be valuable biomarkers for major depressive disorder (MDD). So far, studies have been conducted in adults only, and conclusions are limited, mainly due to small sample sizes. Therefore, the present study was intended to assess whether adrenal steroids (progesterone, 17-hydroxyprogesterone, 21-deoxycortisol, 11-deoxycortisol, cortisol, cortisone, deoxycorticosterone, cortico...

Background: There is a distinct increase in the prevalence of depression with the onset of puberty. The role of peripubertal testosterone levels in boys in this context is insufficiently understood. Moreover, the number of CAG repeats of the androgen receptor gene (AR) and the depression status (subclinical vs. overt depression) may modulate the role of testosterone, but this has not yet been studied in a clinical sample.Methods:...

The steroid constellation in affective disorders suggests a stress-related pathogenesis or response and may pave the way for novel therapeutic strategies. In adolescents, previous studies have identified hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis dysregulation with hypercortisolemia. However, evidence so far is limited to a subset of the steroid spectrum, predominantly focusing on glucocorticoids. In order to gain a more holistic understanding, we analyzed urine metabolites of ...