ESPE Abstracts

Background: About 85–90% of children born small for gestational age (SGA) experience a catch-up growth that occurs mostly during the first year of life and results in a full stature recovery by the age of 2. The remaining 10–15% do not undergo compensatory growth, achieving - if untreated - an adult height approximately 20 cm below their peers.Objective: The aim of this prospective one-center study was to investigate the relation between bone m...

Background: Abnormalities of cervical spine have been described in association with pituitary anomalies in the context of malformative syndromes with midline defects. Several genes are involved in the control of pituitary gland development, differentiation and function. In particular, the presence of os odontoideum has been reported in one case of pituitary hypoplasia, associated with leg anomalies, renal dysplasia and no aberrations of the BMP4, BMP2 and PTX1 genes. In anothe...

Background: Turner syndrome (TS) affects about one in 2500 liveborn females. It results from the loss of all or part of X-chromosome and has a variable phenotype. The classical form is characterised by short stature, skeletal abnormalities, lymphedema, renal and cardiac anomalies, webbed neck, peculiar neurocognitive profile and gonadal dysgenesis. While loss of up to 2/3 of the X chromosome short arm is compatible with normal fertility, chromosome deletions involving Xq are o...

Background: Growth retardation is seen in about 30% of children with chronic renal failure (CRF). Under-nutrition, anaemia, secondary hyperparathyroidism, acidosis, corticosteroid therapy and abnormalities in the GH/insulin like growth factor system have been implicated. Recombinant GH (rGH) therapy is recommended in children showing failure to maintain a normal height velocity despite optimized primary treatments.Objective and hypotheses: It has been de...

Background: Differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) in pediatric age might have peculiar course and prognosis.Objective and hypotheses: To compare clinical, biochemical and ultrasound (US) features at diagnosis, histological grading and outcome in two groups of children and young adults with DTC.Method: Clinical, biochemical and imaging characteristics of 63 patients with DTC, diagnosed between 1999 and 2014 in our hospital, were retro...

Background: Autoimmune Polyendocrinopathy-Candidiasis-Ectodermal-Distrophy (APECED) is a rare autosomal recessive disease, caused by mutations of AIRE gene on chromosome 21. It is characterized by three main diseases: chronic mucocutaneous candidiasis (CMC), chronic hypoparathyroidism (HP) and Addison’s disease (AD).Objective and hypotheses: In this paper we review the clinical phenotypes and the genotypes of pediatric Sicilian population affected b...

Background: GnRH analogs (GnRHa) have been used in treatment of idiopathic central precocious puberty (ICPP) for several decades. Their effectiveness on adult height (AH) improvement has been widely studied and is still debated.Objective and hypotheses: To assess whether BMI changes in ICPP girls during GnRHa treatment can influence AH.Method: A retrospective study of 131 ICPP girls (mean age at diagnosis: 7.6±0.7, range 4.3&#...

Background: Screening for congenital hypothyroidism (CH) with the possibility of an early treatment has transformed the outlook for children with CH. Despite the unquestioned public health success of newborn screening programs, the management of CH is still controversial. Most patients with positive screening have permanent hypothyroidism but some of them may have transient hyperthyreotropinemia, so it is important to identify these patients in order to avoid lifelong unnecess...

Background: Numerous studies have shown that GH, in addition to promoting linear growth, exerts a key role in many metabolic processes. However, there are only few studies aiming at evaluating the metabolic panel of children with GH deficiency (GHD). The aims of the study were: to verify the presence of metabolic alterations in GHD children in comparison with age-matched controls and to check the possible effects of 2 year GH therapy on the metabolic parameters in GHD.<p c...

Background: Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (HT) in childhood may present with either euthyroidism (52.1% of cases), or primary overt hypothyroidism (22.2%), subclinical hypothyroidism (19.2%), overt hyperthyroidism (3.5%), or subclinical hyperthyroidism (3%). In a large series of 608 children and adolescents with presenting HT, we found in no cases a biochemical picture with low free thyroxine (FT4) and normal or low-normal TSH serum levels, i.e. a thyroid pattern tha...