ESPE Abstracts

Background: Soluble CD163 (sCD163) is shed from the cell surface into the circulation as a specific marker of macrophage activation. Macrophages are involved in low-grade inflammatory states such as obesity.Objective and hypotheses: To investigate the relationships between circulating sCD163 and metabolic parameters in asymptomatic prepubertal children.Method: A population of 236 school-aged Caucasian children (111 girls and 125 bo...

Background: Prenatal dexamethasone (DXM) treatment has been proposed to prevent genital virilization in girls with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH), however its safety has been questioned for potential adverse effects on the foetus and the mother.Objective and hypotheses: To analyse clinical practice and prenatal treatment experience with DXM during pregnancy at risk of having her daughters with severe CAH.Method: An online sur...

Background: The surgical reconstruction of hypospadias is usually performed during the first 2 years of life but little objective data is available to determine its optimal timing. Whereas the no-early surgery option in DSD management is rising, the results of late genital surgery should be evaluated before advocating this attitude.Objective and hypotheses: To evaluate the outcome of hypospadias surgery according to age and to determine if some complicat...

Introduction: Improvements in the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) have increased survival, with the consequent concern about the long-term effects that childhood chemotherapy may have on ovarian function. AMH constitutes an indirect, reliable biomarker of the ovarian reserve, useful for the assessment of cancer therapy-related ovarian damage.Aim: To evaluate small ovarian f...

Introduction: Imprinted genes are critical for placental function and normal fetal growth and development. Very little is known about the impact of maternal obesity on imprinted genes and their role in postnatal growth and metabolism.Objectives: 1) To identify umbilical cord DNA methylation sites (CpG) associated with gestational weight gain (GWG); 2) to identify which of these CpGs lie within imprinting control regions ...

Background: Obesity rates in children and adolescents have increased dramatically across the globe, and the lifelong impact of obesity is more severe when onset begins at ≤20 years of age. However, the experiences, challenges and needs of adolescents living with obesity (ALwO), their caregivers, and the healthcare providers (HCPs) who treat them are poorly understood. ACTION Teens, the first study of its kind, aims to improve the lives of ALwO by generat...

Introduction: Children with Prader-Willi syndrome present with short stature and obesity. However, very little is known about the role of this imprinted control region in the general population. This study aims to analyze the methylation status of the PWS imprinting control region (ICR) in placenta and its association with postnatal growth and obesity parameters in healthy children.Methodology: The methylation percentages of the PWS-ICR ...

Though up to fourteen different MODY subtypes have been so far described, there are no studies in the literature which have determined their actual frequency and prevalence in pediatric patients.Objectives: To identify the underlying molecular basis in a cohort of pediatric patients with a suspected clinical diagnosis of MODY by targeted NGS.Materials/Methods: Cohort of 60 patient fulfilling MODY c...

Background: In vitro studies suggest a broader role for aldosterone, beyond elevating blood pressure. Clinical data support the notion that aldosterone can directly alter the function of the immune system and can participate in low-grade inflammation which leads to blood pressure elevation and end organ damage.Objective and hypothesis: To assess in humans, whether aldosterone plasma levels and mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) expression associate...

Background: A total of 456 skeletal dysplasias have been classified by molecular, biochemical and/or radiological criteria, into 40 groups. Despite this, the precise, final diagnosis is often difficult due to the high phenotypic and genotypic variability.Objective: To improve the molecular and clinical diagnosis of skeletal dysplasias using a custom-designed next-generation sequencing (NGS) panel.Method: A total of 56 skeletal dysp...