ESPE Abstracts

Background: Hypothalamic dysfunction (HD) is life-threatening but precise diagnostic tools are lacking. Normal hypothalamic anatomy is difficult to delineate on MRI. Damage to the area is inferred from a visible lesion, but how widely it disturbs signalling connections or correlates with symptoms is unclear. Furthermore, in congenital/syndromic diseases the hypothalamus appears normal even in cases with clear HD. We aimed to develop novel clinical and radiolog...

Introduction: Obesity is the main public health problem in Mexico. Several factors have been described as explanations, mainly: increased sedentarism and caloric intake. Such environment has been described as “obesogenic”. The aim of this study was to describe the relationship between the components of such obesogenic environment and the adiposity of Mexican children and adolescents.Methods: We carried a population-based cross-sectional study o...

Introduction: Obesity is a significant public health concern affecting children and young people (CYP) worldwide. The impact of obesity on CYP is multi-faceted and can have a significant effect on their lives. They are at risk of being stigmatized and discriminated against, leading to poor academic performance and social functioning. It is crucial to assess the impact of obesity on the lives of CYP through tools such as Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) q...

Background: Children with structural hypothalamic-pituitary anomalies, e.g. ectopic posterior pituitary (EPP) with/without pituitary stalk interruption syndrome, septo-optic dysplasia (SOD), and isolated anterior pituitary aplasia/hypoplasia (AP/HP) usually have more severe GHD and better auxological outcomes with GH therapy than those with normal hypothalamic-pituitary magnetic resonance imaging findings. However, adult height data is limited.Objective:...

Background: The phases of human growth are associated with gene expression (GE) changes1, raising the possibility that rhythmic patterns of GE occur throughout childhood.Objective: In this study, we have assessed time-series patterns of GE profiles associated with age to characterise oscillations.Methods: GE analysis was conducted on cells of lymphoid origin from normal individuals through childhood (n=87, 43 ma...

Background: Robot assisted therapy has the potential to provide emotional and educational support to young patients with type 1 diabetes (T1DM).Objective: To investigate the attitudes of children and young people with T1DM and that of their parents towards the concept of utilising a humanoid robot as an assistant in the management of their diabetes.Methods: A humanoid robot programmed to help self-management of T1DM at home was int...

Background: To date, one randomized, controlled, clinical trial (RCCT) demonstrated that GH-treated patients with SHOX deficiency (SHOX-D) had GH-mediated height gain comparable to that of girls with Turner syndrome (TS). No new safety concerns were identified, but the study was limited by small sample size.Objective and hypotheses: To examine long-term outcomes in patients treated in standard clinical practice, we assessed final height (FH) and safety o...

Background: Concern remains regarding the potential influence of growth hormone (GH) treatment on neoplasia because of the general growth-inducing effect of GH and associations between high serum IGF1 concentrations and certain cancers in adulthood. Many studies that evaluated risk for primary cancer in GH-treated patients without previous malignancy found no increased rates of primary neoplasia. A higher risk for colorectal cancer was observed in a single-country cohort treat...

Background: Fertility Preservation (FP) in children and adolescents poses unique challenges as efficacy is unproven.Objective and hypotheses: To describe characteristics and evidence for potential fertility in ovarian and testicular tissue cryopreservation specimens (OTCP and TTCP respectively) taken from paediatric and adolescent patients, stratified by age, and prior chemotherapy.Method: Retrospective review of gonadal biopsies a...

Background: Children and young people living with severe obesity experience a range of complications of excess weight (CEW), however the prevalence of complications is not well defined. We have evaluated baseline clinical characteristics and CEW of patients seen in two multi-disciplinary tier-3 paediatric weight management services in different regions of the UK.Methods: All new patients (n=185) aged 2-17 years ...