ESPE Abstracts

Introduction: Very little is known about the development of the immune system during puberty. Autoimmune diseases, like juvenile onset systemic lupus erythematosus (jSLE), have an unexplained female bias and a higher incidence after puberty. IFN alpha (IFNα) is a potent antiviral cytokine, and jSLE has a strong IFNα transcriptional signature. Toll like receptors 7 and 9 (TLR7/9) sense viral RNA and DNA respectively, and trigger plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDC) to p...

Introduction: There are well described sex differences in the immune system. It has been shown in both innate and adaptive immunity that females have a more robust response than males. Various autoimmune diseases have a strong sex bias towards females. It is the accepted dogma that oestrogen in females relates to an increased risk of autoimmunity, but evidence to this end is scarce. Interferon alpha (IFNα) is a potent anti-viral innate cytokine, and many autoimmune diseas...

Background: Gonadotoxic cancer therapy may cause adult male infertility. We previously reported that, of 2/3rds of underage males agreeing to pre-treatment sperm cryopreservation before cancer treatment, 2/3rds succeeded.Objective and hypotheses: i) To evaluate how many patients banking sperm successfully (GP1) returned for post treatment re-evaluation compared with those who attempted but failed (GP2). ii) To compare intergroup survival and fertility ra...

Background: Referrals to pediatric endocrine clinics for short stature are common. Height velocity (HV) is an essential component of the evaluation of short stature as growth deceleration often reflects an underlying pediatric endocrine diagnosis (PED). Access to previous measurements facilitates prompt calculation of HV.Objective and hypotheses: To determine availability of previous measurements at time of referral for short stature, to characterize PED...

Context: Optimal levels of 25-OH-Vitamin D (25OHD) for children are unknown. Prevalent population levels of 25OHD are likely to be sub-optimal since sun exposure is reduced in modern living.Objective: To deduce recommended levels of 25OHD by testing, in children, the level at which 25OHD optimally effects calcium, phosphate and parathyroid hormone levels in a population-based data.Design:</...

Introduction: The optimal level of 25-OH-Vitamin D in children is not clear since most studies have been performed on adults. Creating normal levels is problematic since the recommended level of vitamin D is based on the effect of vitamin D on other parameters and not upon its level in the population.Methods: This is a "big-data" study in which we analyzed Vitamin D tests from 49,935 children sampled in Clalit He...

We present a 3-year-old boy with massive obesity and hyperphagia. His appetite symptoms were evident from age 3 months, and his parents report he has an insatiable appetite, and seeks food constantly. At presentation to our clinic, his BMI was 37.21 Kg/m² [+ 6.87 SDS]. Sleep apnoea is suspected, for which he is undergoing evaluation. Parents are second cousins. Both parents are moderately obese, but his siblings are normal weight for age. The mother did not have a history...

Background: The BoneXpert method for automated determination of bone age from hand X-rays has always included a determination of the Bone Health Index (BHI) from the cortical thicknesses in the metacarpals.Objective and hypotheses: The aim was to extend this so-called digital X-ray radiogrammetry method into adults, and present reference curves for BHI and three other indices: the metacarpal index, the Exton-Smith index and the volume-per-area (proportio...

Background: The BoneXpert method for automated determination of bone age (BA) from hand X-rays was introduced in 2009, covering the Greulich-Pyle BA range up to 17 years for boys and 15 years for girls.Objective and hypotheses: To present an extension of the BA range of the automated method up to 19 years for boys and 18 years for girls and to validate it against manual rating.Method: The extension was developed based on images fro...

Background: Monogenic diabetes is a type of diabetes resulting from mutations of a single gene that may be spontaneous de novo or autosomal dominant or recessive. Reported incidence is 1-4% and confirmed by molecular genetic testing. Transient neonatal diabetes is usually diagnosed within the first week of life and resolves around 12 weeks. Permanent neonatal diabetes should be considered in all children presenting with diabetes in first month of age, and do n...