ESPE Abstracts

Background: Hypoparathyroidism, sensorineural deafness, and renal disease (HDR syndrome, Barakat syndrome) is a rare condition, caused by a mutation on chromosome 10p which affects the GATA3 gene. GATA3 encodes a transcription factor important for the embryonic development of the parathyroid gland, the auditory stem, and the kidneys. Its expression has also been found in the thymus and the central nervous system. A wide range of renal involvement has been rep...

Background and aims: The spread of obesity among children and adolescents is increasing significantly in the last decades. The World Health Organisation defined the disease as a global epidemic and the need of complex interventions worldwide is well recognised. Obesity is major risk factor for many chronic diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular and lung diseases, orthopaedic and skin problems, and cancer. There are strong predictors that 50% of pre-pubertal and 50–7...

Background: Precocious puberty is defined as the onset of pubertal signs in girls younger than 8 years of age and in boys younger than 9 years of age. Central precocious puberty is due to an early activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis. Different candidate genes were involved in the etiology of the disease. To date, mutations in the maternally imprinted gene MKRN3 are most frequently found in families with CPP.Objective and hypotheses: The...

Background: Mixed gonadal dysgenesis (MGD) is a disorder of sex development associated with a numerical sex chromosome abnormality. Reported genital phenotypes range from female external genitalia or mild clitoromegaly through all stages of ambiguous genitalia to hypospadias or a normal penis, depending on the proportion of monosomic cells.Case presentation: 18 years old girl, with a history of hypertension, ventricular septal defect and obesity presente...

Background: Allgrove sydrome (triple A, 4 A syndrome) is a rare autosomal recessive disorder, characterized by the triad of ACTH resistant adrenal insufficiency, alacrima and achalasia. In addition many patients show progressive neurologic impairment such as progressive paripheral polyneuropathy, hyperreflexia, nasal speech and disautonomia. It is now known that mutations of the ADRACALIN (AAAS) gene on the 12q13, that encodes the protein ALADIN, are responsible for the clinic...

Central diabetes insipidus (CDI) at neonatal age may occur in the setting of intracranial abnormalities that affect the hypothalamus-pituitary system. These conditions are characterized by defective production, transport or secretion of antidiuretic hormone (ADH). This results in inappropriately low ADH levels in the setting of increased plasma osmolality. We present the case of an infant born by C-section at 38 weeks of gestation, with bilateral cheilognatopalatoschisis, naso...

Hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemia (HH) is common in newborns. If hypoglycemia occurs after the first 48 hours following birth, it may be a sign of an underlying condition. We present the case of a baby girl born at 38 weeks of pregnancy, with good adaptation to extrauterine life and blood glucose of 60 mg/dl in the first days of birth. Approximately 2 days after discharge, she was addressed at the emergency unit because of food refusal for approximately 30 hours, with a blood suga...

Introduction: Persistent Müllerian duct syndrome (PMDS) is a rare disorder of sex development (DSD) characterized by the persistence of Müllerian derivatives, the uterus and/or fallopian tubes, in otherwise normally virilized boys. PMDS is caused by mutations in the genes coding anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH, PMDS type 1) or the AMH receptor (AMHR2 gene, PMDS type 2) and it usually presents as undescended testes (cryptorchidism) or inguinal hernia...

Background: Chimerism is the phenomenon of two or more genetically distinct cell lines (originating from different zygotes) in the same individual. In situations when the sex of the fertilised eggs is disparate, it can lead to intersex phenotypes.Objective and hypotheses: We report a case of ovotesticular disorder of sexual development with chimerism resulting from a twin pregnancy (not involving assisted reproductive technologies).<p class="abstext"...

Background: Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) is a group of autosomal recessive disorders characterised by impaired cortisol synthesis. An enzymatic defect in 11-beta-hydroxylase is the second most common variant of CAH and accounts for approximately 5–8% of cases. Patients present with features of androgen excess and approximately two thirds of patients also have high blood pressure (HBP), which is initially responsive to glucocorticoid replacement, but may become a c...