ESPE Abstracts

Background: Quality of life and long-term prognosis are frequently, often severely impaired in craniopharyngioma (CP) patients.Objective and hypotheses: Knowledge of risk factors for long-term outcome is important for optimisation of treatment.Method: Overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS), BMI, neuropsychological status (EORTCQLQ-C30, MFI-20), and psychosocial status were analysed in 261 patients with childhood-...

Background: Paediatric patients with sellar masses such as craniopharyngioma (CP) or cyst of Rathke’s pouch (CRP) frequently suffer disease- and treatment-related sequelae.Objective and hypotheses: We analysed the impact and prognostic relevance of initial hydrocephalus (HY) and hypothalamic involvement (HI) on long-term survival and functional capacity (FC) in children with CP or CRP.Method: Using retrospective analysis of pa...

Background: Mauriac syndrome (MS) classically involves hepatomegaly (hepatic glycogenosis), growth impairment and cushingoid features in a patient with poorly controlled type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). The typical age of presentation is adolescence. With the advent of improved insulin regimens, MS has seen less frequently. However, new cases appear each year in medical literature.Clinical case: We report the case of a 9 years and 9 months of age male, w...

Introduction: Noonan syndrome (NS) is caused by mutations in RAS/MAPK signaling pathway genes. About 70% of the NS patients have short stature, and human recombinant growth hormone (rhGH) is an established yet not fully standardized treatment.Objective: To assess the first 2 years rhGH treatment effectiveness in NS patients at a single centre.Materials and methods: A total of 20 (16 male) NS patien...

Background: Vitamin D Dependent Rickets Type IA(VDDR1a) is an autosomal recessive disorder characterized by defects in the biosynthesis of its active form 1,25 dihydroxyvitamin D due to the mutations in the CYP27B1 gene encoding for the enzyme 1α-hydroxylase.Objective and hypotheses: To evaluatethe clinical characteristics, molecular genetics aetiology and long-term outcome of a large nationwide cohort of VDDR-Ia f...

Background: The Short Synacthen Test (SST) is the most popular test of adrenal insufficiency (AI) worldwide. The current SST protocol at Sheffield Children’s Hospital (SCH), UK, recommends measurement of serum cortisol at baseline, then 30- and 60-minutes post stimulation, with a peak cortisol of >429nmol/l constituting a pass. Our practice has evolved to consider near-pass results as “borderline” and patients may be treated with stress do...

Background and Aims: HNF4A-MODY clinical expression is broad, ranging from hypoglycemic hyperinsulinism in the neonatal period and early childhood to hyperglycemia and diabetes, as insulin secretion progressively decreases in adult patients. The main objective was to clinically and molecularly characterize patients with glycemic alterations, negative autoimmunity and confirmed molecular diagnosis of HNF4A-MODY.Materials and Metho...

Background: Achondroplasia (ACH), caused by a pathogenic variant in the fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 gene (FGFR3), is characterized by severe growth failure and may be associated with multisystemic complications. The clinical phenotype is variable and relates to deformity of rhizomelic shortened legs, and myelon compression at cranial base and spine. Recent guidelines are published for diagnostic workflow, neurosurgical, orthopaedic and otorhinolaryngol...

Background: GL1I2 encodes a zinc-finger transcription factor expressed in the developing hypothalamus and in Rathke's pouch, the embryonic precursor of the pituitary gland. Pathogenic GL1I2 variants have been implicated in the etiology of the broad clinical spectrum of congenital hypopituitarism (CHY): holoprosencephaly, midline facial abnormalities, Culler-Jones syndrome, combined pituitary hormone-deficiency (CPHD) and isolated GH-defi...

Background: Differences in sexual development (DSD) are rare diagnoses, which affect the chromosomal, anatomical or gonadal sex differentiation. Although comprehensive counseling of patients and parents/carers is necessary to ensure a positive coping with the diagnosis and a well-informed decision-making, standardised programmes are lacking. Empower-DSD is a government-funded project, which developed an age-adapted multidisciplinary education programme to impr...