ESPE Abstracts

Background: The aim of therapy in patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) is to use glucocorticoid doses as low as possible to achieve adrenal suppression. Both chronically increased androgen secretion and increased glucocorticoid exposure may adversely affect adult height and in some patients this therapeutic balance is difficult to achieve. In these particular cases aromatase inhibitors (AI) could be indicated with de aim to reduce glucocorticoid doses avoiding th...

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: Autoimmune polyendocrinopathy-candidiasis-ectodermal dystrophy (APECED or APS1) is an autosomal recessive disorder characterized by chronic candidiasis and autoimmune destruction of endocrine organs. Hypoparathyroidism (HP), adrenocortical failure (AF) and hypogonadism are the most common endocrinopathies, which together with their treatment may impact bone health. However, very little is known about the long-term skeletal health in patients with APECED.<p clas...

Background: Cell-mediated initiation of enchondral ossification is essential for growth plate maturation. The matrix mineralization inhibitors matrix Gla protein (MGP) and osteocalcin (OC) represent key regulators of matrix mineralization and are highly expressed in growth plate chondrocytes. Pharmacological or nutritional phylloquinone (K1) depletion is known to affect skeletal mineralization by reduced gamma-carboxilisation of MGP and OC. Constituents of mineral matrix such ...

Background: We present a 17-year-old female who presented with a 1 year history of hirsutism, male pattern baldness, marked cystic acne and mild cliteromegaly. She had her menarche at the age of 15 years and continued thereon to have a regular menstrual cycle. She was pubertal on examination (B3, P5, A5) with no neurological deficit.Objective and hypotheses: This female presented with marked clinical hyperandrogenism. We initially suspected polycystic ov...

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: Reports suggest that youths with short stature (SS) exhibit academic under-achievement relative to cognitive aptitude and GH treatment diminishes the difference. However, interpretation of this achievement-aptitude discrepancy is confounded by the use of achievement and intelligence tests normed in different samples.Objective and hypotheses: To assess whether reports of academic underachievement in SS samples are partially attributable to cho...

Background: Partial thyroxine-binding globulin deficiency (TBG-PD) is an endocrine defect with a prevalence of 1:4 000 in newborns. Due to the presence of a single TBG gene on the X chromosome.Objective and hypotheses: To investigate the clinical characteristics of twins with thyroxine binding globulin deficiency and to find SERPINA7 gene mutations.Method: Data related to clinical characteristics, serum biochemistry, gene mutations...

Background: There is no knowledge of the energy metabolism in the presence of X chromosome aneuploidy or structural aberrations. Recently, an abnormal muscle metabolism was observed in girls with Turner syndrome (TS).Objective and Hypotheses: Resting energy expenditure was prospectively estimated by indirect spirometry in 92 short prepubertal girls at the start of GH therapy.Method: The diagnoses were TS (n=23), GH deficie...