ESPE Abstracts

Background/Aims: Cryptorchidism or undescended testis is a prevalent congenital urogenital condition affecting male newborns with an incidence rate ranging from 1.0 to 4.6%. Mouse models have implicated INSL3 and its receptor RXFP2 (formerly known as GREAT or LGR8) in the development of the condition. RXFP2 acts as a G protein-coupled receptor that triggers the generation of cAMP by binding INSL3. But despite the established role in testicular descent, so far ...

Background: At present few data have clearly showed an increased frequency of idiopathic central precocious puberty (CPP) in females during the COVID-19 pandemic. The role of environmental factors is not fully understood and various hypotheses have been formulated.Aims of the study: To evaluate retrospectively the incidence of newly diagnosed CPP and other pubertal disorders (Premature thelarche, early puberty, fast pube...

Background: Patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) are treated with life-long glucocorticoid (GC) replacement therapy. Negative effects on cognition, brain structure and function during working memory tasks have been identified. To date, no studies on functional connectivity during rest have been performed in patients with CAH. One study conducted on patients with Cushing’s syndrome, another disorder of cortisol imbalance, suggests that long-t...

Title: The making of the EndoWatch: A new device for Early Monitoring of Hypothalamic imbalances. Hulsmann S, Petras S, Fraboulet P, Yuan Lu, van Santen HM (on behalf of the EndoWatch team) Keywords: Paediatric and adolescent cancer survivors, Brain tumour, Quality of Life, Wearable, Hypothalamic Obesity Main goals: Aim for better quality of lifeIntroduction: Children and adults with a suprasellar (hypothalamic)...

Background/Aims: Length and weight of all children in Flanders are monitored every three years at school from the age of 3 years. The current criteria used for referral to specialized care are: height SDS < -2.5, height SDS between -2 and -2.5 SDS with a height SDS adjusted for parental height < -1.64, or a decrease in height SDS of more than 1 SDS in the past 3 years. The aim of this study is to investigate the sensitivity of the Flemish referral criter...

In Belgium, neonatal TSH screening for congenital hypothyroidism has been performed between day 3 and 5 of life since the late seventies. In January 2015, a policy of early discharge of healthy neonates was implemented so that the neonatal screening strategy had to be adapted. Between January 2015 and September 2019, dried blood spot sampling was mostly collected at home AFTER discharge at 72 h of life (Newborn Screening Strategy 1 (NBS1)). After October 2019, sampling was mos...

Introduction: Consensus guidelines (2021) state that a second dry blood spot (DBS) should be considered for newborn screening (NBS) in preterms (delayed TSH rise).Objective: To evaluate the diagnostic yield of an NBS strategy including a second DBS at 14 days in preterms.Material and Methods: Retrospective study of 2 cohorts. Cohort 1: live births <37 weeks of gestational age (G...

Background: Digital health solutions, such as the Growzen™ buddy smartphone application (app), can facilitate adherence to recombinant human growth hormone (r-hGH) treatment for patients with growth disorders. The app alerts patients when it’s time for an injection and allows patients and their caregivers to self-monitor growth, to build a routine and improve adherence. The app also contains educational resources to empower patients to be active in...

Introduction: Childhood obesity is associated with alterations in hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis activity. We tested the hypothesis that multiple alterations in the metabolism of glucocorticoids are required for the development of hypertension in children who become overweight.Methods: Timed spot urine for targeted gas chromatography-mass spectrometry steroid metabolome analysis was collected from (1) overweight/hyp...

Background: Pycnodysostosis is a very rare autosomal recessive skeletal dysplasia caused by cathepsin K deficiency. It is characterized by extreme short stature resulting in an adult height in males typically <150 cm and in females <134 cm. Bone-fragility and frequent fractures are present. There are few case-reports on the effects of GH treatment.Objective: To evaluate the effect and safety of GH in 6 patients wit...