ESPE Abstracts

Background: Craniopharyngioma is a non-malignant embryonic tumour in the pituitary-hypothalamic area, associated with hypothalamic obesity. Dysfunctional parasympathetic nervous system activity has been proposed as one mechanism underlying alterations in energy metabolism. Arterial spin labelling (ASL) is a non-invasive MRI technique that quantifies brain tissue perfusion as a proxy for functional activity. Here, we measure cerebral perfusion in patients with ...

Background: Fetal skeletal bone development and mineralisation depends on placental calcium transfer. Although Parathyroid Hormone (PTH) pathway has some contribution, TRPV6 (the sixth member of the Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid family) is a recently identified receptor involved in calcium transport and is predominantly expressed in the placenta. It has not previously been linked with skeletal development disorders.Case: This infant had...

Introduction: Primary adrenal insufficiency (PAI) is a potentially life-threatening condition that requires appropriate diagnosis and treatment. The most common cause of PAI is congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH), but other well-established aetiologies include metabolic and autoimmune disorders, and physical damage. Mutations in more than 30 genes have now been associated with PAI, with considerable biochemical and phenotypic overlap. It is therefore importan...

Background: Hypercalciuria, short stature and low bone mineral density are features of distal renal tubular acidosis (dRTA) and osteogenesis imperfecta (OI). If untreated, the presence of dRTA in patients with OI may worsen the prognosis and lead to poorer height outcomes. We describe two unrelated children with an unusual association between OI and dRTA.Cases: Patient 1 is a 7-year-old female diagnosed prenatally with a COL1A2 mutation and postnatally w...

Background: Hypernatraemia in a neonate can be common, and is usually due to high rates of insensible water loss and high urine output and subsequent dehydration. This is commonly resolved with supplementation of feeds.Case presentation: We present a preterm baby born at 35 weeks gestation who was born in good condition, did not require ventilation or intensive care support. The only support required was for feeding and thermoregulation. In the second we...

Background: Pubertal gynaecomastia is thought to be a clinical sign of an oestrogen-androgen imbalance, affecting up to 60% of boys. In most cases no underlying endocrinopathy can be identified. In boys, Anti-müllerian hormone (AMH) is produced by immature Sertoli cells and circulating level decreases as testosterone increases during pubertal maturation. In a previous cross sectional study we found significant lower levels of AMH in boys with pubertal gynaecomastia (Mieri...

Background: Noonan syndrome (NS) is a rare genetic disease characterized by facial dysmorphism, short stature, heart defects, chest deformities, and variable developmental delay/learning disabilities. Almost 80% of patients have a mutation in the genes encoding components of the RAS/MAPK pathway. Puberty was described as delayed in NS patients, but few studies are focusing on this subject and genotype-phenotype correlations so far.<s...

Background: In humans, glucocorticoids (GCs) regulate a broad spectrum of physiologic functions, exerting both genomic and nongenomic actions through their ubiquitously expressed glucocorticoid receptor (hGR). The rapid nongenomic actions of GCs are likely to be mediated by membrane hGRs that transduce the glucocorticoid signal via activation of kinases. S-palmitoylation plays an important role in plasma membrane localization and occurs through a highly conserved nine amino ac...

Hypoparathyroidism is treated with oral calcium carbonate and vitamin D analogues to increase serum calcium levels. Recombinant human parathyroid hormone (rhPTH) therapy can be considered in patients with poorly controlled hypocalcaemia or side effects to conventional treatment. Constipation, a known side effect of calcium carbonate, is often easily managed with simple laxatives. We describe resolution of severe constipation by changing conventional treatment to rhPTH. A femal...

Background: Congenital hypothyroidism(CH) is the most common neonatal endocrinological disorder in the world. Although most of the CH is sporadic, some genetic defects are responsible from the etiology. The aim of this study was to determine the genetic and etiological factors of CH.Methods: 49 patients(female;n=24), from 24 families were included in the study. The data, collected retrospectively, consisted ...