ESPE Abstracts

Growth Hormone deficiency (GHD) in newborn is an infrequent condition, which can cause threat to life due mainly to hypoglycemia that begins in the first week of life. A GH basal level (whether random or associated with spontaneous hypoglycemia) that distinguishes infants with GHD from those with GH sufficiency in the neonatal period is not conclusive. Few data have been reported about the GH measurements in serum and dried blood spots on filter paper samples in healthy neonat...

Background: Isolated growth hormone deficiency (IGHD) is a relatively common disorder. Current diagnostic protocols require a brain MRI of the hypothalamus and the hypophysis after establishment of the diagnosis, with the aim of identifying structural defects and specifically rule out an underlying space-occupying lesion. An MRI scan is costly and requires general anesthesia in young children. Data on the contribution of brain MRI in diagnosing children with I...

Background: Noonan syndrome (NS) is a frequent autosomal dominant disorder characterized by facial dysmorphisms, heart defects, short stature and learning disabilities. It is caused by mutations in genes within the RAS/MAPK signaling pathway, thus called RASopathies. The RAS/MAPK pathway can also impact the signal transduction of hormones involved in body weight, carbohydrate, and lipid metabolism features scarcely studied only in animal models. This study aimed to describe me...

Background: BoneXpert is a software for automated measurement of bone age (BA) and radiogrammetry (bone health index). The precision error of the software for BA measure is smaller than the human rating error and the accuracy relative to the human routine ratings is 0.80 years. Differences in skeletal maturation between ethnicities have been reported, so it is important to have specific references for the own population.Objective: To present the automate...

Introduction: The low-dose synacthen test (LDT) is widely used to assess central adrenal insufficiency (CAI); however, the total serum cortisol (C) cut-off value is controversial. A correct diagnosis of CAI is required, but overdiagnosis may lead to unnecessary hormone replacement therapy. Salivary cortisol (SC) reflects the levels of free serum cortisol and is a noninvasive alternative.Objective: To define a new cut-off value of serum cortisol in pediat...

Background: Primary ovarian failure (POF) is a major cause of female infertility. POF is characterized by amenorrhea, hypo-estrogenism and elevated gonadotrophin levels. In POF disorder, several genetic alterations have been described, however in most of the patients the etiology of this disorder remains unknown.Objective and hypotheses: To identify new genes implicated in the development of POF using Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS).<p class="abstex...

Background: The majority of children with short stature are classified as idiopathic short stature. Whole exome sequencing can help identify genetic causes of short stature.Methods: We recruited 10 children with short stature of unknown etiology. We conducted whole exome sequencing of the patients and their family members. We used an analysis pipeline to identify rare nonsynonymous genetic variants that might cause the short stature. All rare allelic var...

Background: Disorders of sex development (DSD) are those congenital conditions in which development of chromosomal, gonadal, or anatomical sex is atypical. 45,X/46,XY mosaicism results in a large clinical spectrum of DSD including from female patients with Turner’s syndrome to normal appearing males.Objective and hypotheses: The main aim of this study is to review the clinical and gonad histological findings in a cohort of chromosomal DSD patients f...

Background: Life expectancy of children with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has increased due to highly active antiretroviral therapy. Metabolic disorders and changes in bone mineral density (BMD) are common in adult patients with HIV. There are few studies evaluating metabolic and bone involvement in children.Objective and hypotheses: To evaluate metabolic disorders and BMD in vertically HIV-infected children in four Chilean hospitals.<p class="...

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...