ESPE Abstracts

Growth hormone deficiency (GHD) in children results in reduced adult height. Children with GHD typically require daily subcutaneous (s.c.) injections of growth hormone (GH). Daily injections are burdensome for both patients and their caregivers and reduced adherence negatively impacts clinical outcomes. Somapacitan (Novo Nordisk) is a long-acting reversible albumin-binding human GH derivative in development for once-weekly s.c. administration in children with GHD, aiming to ov...

Context: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is defined by androgen excess and ovarian dysfunction in the absence of a specific physiological diagnosis. The best clinical marker of androgen excess is hirsutism, while the best biochemical parameter is still a matter of debate. Current consensus guidelines recommend serum free testosterone as the most sensitive serum parameter to measure androgen excess. Recently, however, novel active androgens and androgen metabo...

Introduction: Vitamin D status is investigated as a modifier for the risk and course of multiple malignant diseases. Findings point towards a detrimental role of low vitamin D levels for event free and overall survival (EFS/OS). However, vitamin D deficiency is often associated with secondary hyperparathyroidism, which may influence EFS/OS in childhood malignancies.Methods: Real world data from 1547 cases (873 male) of c...

Introduction: Obesity and the metabolic syndrome (MetS) are linked to increased risk for endothelial dysfunction which is considered as the first step in the progression of cardiovascular disease. Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) is a protein with known effects on various metabolic pathways. In adults, the circulating blood levels of FGF21 have been associated with parameters of lipid/carbohydrate metabolism, and FGF21 is known to be increased in obesity. T...

Background: Treatment of children with classic congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) is a difficult balance between hypercortisolism and hyperandrogenism. Biochemical monitoring of treatment is not well defined.Objective: Retrospective software-assisted analysis of urinary steroid metabolome analysis obtained by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) for treatment monitoring of children with CAH.<p class="abstex...

Background: Autoimmune primary adrenal insufficiency (PAI) is a rare and life-threatening disease. Standard replacement therapy consists of multiple daily doses of hydrocortisone combined with fludrocortisone. A recent Endocrine Society guideline argued against hormonal monitoring of glucocorticoid replacement. However, about 50% of adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with chronic diseases are non-adherent to their prescribed treatment regimens. Pervasive nonadherence places p...

Thyroid dysgenesis (TD) is the most common cause of congenital hypothyroidism in iodine sufficient regions. TD includes a broad spectrum of developmental anomalies varying from absence of thyroid (athyreosis) to an abnormally located thyroid (ectopy), small (hypoplasia) or asymmetric thyroid. Thyroid dysgenesis is usually sporadic, but up to 2% of cases is familial. Genetics of TD is complex and advances in developmental biology over the past two decades revealed monogenetic f...

Background: Very early onset diabetes mellitus (neonatal diabetes mellitus (NDM)) seems to be unrelated to autoimmunity in most instances. A number of conditions are associated with NDM, some of which have been elucidated at the molecular level. Among these, the recently elucidated mutations in the KCNJ11 and ABCC8 genes, encoding the Kir6.2 and SUR1 subunit of the pancreatic KATP channel involved in regulation of insulin secretion, account for one...

Background: An ENDO-ERN initiative was launched which was endorsed by the European Society for Pediatric Endocrinology and the European Society for Endocrinology with 22 participants from the ENDO-ERN and the two societies. The aim was to update the practice guidelines for the diagnosis and management of congenital hypothyroidism (CH). A systematic literature search was conducted to identify key articles on neonatal screening, diagnosis and management of prima...

Introduction: Brain tumors are the most common solid neoplasm in children, and treatment often includes high-dose irradiation of the central nervous system (CNS). Although not universal, growth hormone deficiency (GHD) is a very common endocrine late effect after CNS irradiation in childhood. The consequences of GHD in adults are many e.g., reduced bone mineral density, fatigue, decreased lean body mass and adiposity, which implies that adults with severe GHD ...