Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: Alemtuzumab is a humanized anti-CD52 monoclonal antibody approved for the treatment of relapsing−remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). Through an immune reconstitution mechanism, it leads to thyroid autoimmunity in 35% of cases, with Graves’ disease (GD) being the most common presentation. Alemtuzumab-induced GD exhibits distinctive clinical and immunological features, with rarely reported cases of fluctuating thyroid status with documented both blockin...

Introduction: The effects of long-term replacement therapy of primary adrenal insufficiency (PAI) are still a matter of debate. Glucocorticoid (GC) replacement regimens do not completely mimic the endogenous hormonal production and their monitoring is sometimes difficult. Therefore, some patients are exposed to mild GC excess with potential complications, such as hypertension, diabetes, and skeletal fragility. Data on bone mineral density (BMD) in PAI is still scarce and contr...

Introduction: Testosterone-based gender-affirming hormone therapy (GAHT) may have negative consequences on cardiovascular risk, with reported increased blood pressure, decreased HDL-cholesterol, and weight gain. Still, data on cardiometabolic changes in transgender men on GAHT remain controversial. Testosterone-based GAHT also modifies body composition and lean muscle mass, but the degree to which affects serum creatinine and other measures of kidney function is still not clea...

Introduction: Parathyroid carcinoma (PC) is an extremely rare malignancy. A complete surgical excision is often difficult, and persistent/recurrent disease occurs in up to 65% of cases. Progression often leads to symptomatic hypercalcemia, the major contributor to poor quality of life and mortality. Treatment options beyond surgical resection are limited. Denosumab is an approved therapy for refractory hypercalcemia of malignancy, and its use in unresectable PC has been descri...

Introduction: In most cases, adrenal incidentalomas are non-functioning adrenocortical adenomas, but may also represent conditions in which therapeutic intervention is essential, such as pheochromocytomas, even with low index of suspicion.Case reports: Case report 1. Fifty-three-year-old male with history of arterial hypertension (HT), type 2 diabetes Mellitus and myocardial infarction, with a right adrenal incidentaloma found in abdomi...

Introduction: Definitive diagnosis of lymphocytic hypophisitis (LH) lacks a pathological analysis. The detection of pituitary antibodies (PAB) with the current methods presents variable results and its clinical utility is therefore limited. Recently, new methods were released for the interpretation of indirect immunofluorescence (IIF), which can increase the specificity for detection of PAB.Methods: We evaluated four patients followed in endocrinology co...

Introduction: Pituitary apoplexy (PA) is an endocrine emergency and usually presents with sudden headache and visual fields changes. Pituitary function assessment should be performed promptly and repeated throughout follow-up, regardless of the choice of treatment.Methods/design: Retrospective analysis of patients diagnosed with PA admitted to an Endocrinoloy Department of a tertiary hospital between 2002 and 2017. Review of patients’ medical record...

IntroductionPrimary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) is a common endocrine disorder and classically associated with hypercalcemia (HHPT). There is a newest variant of PHPT, defined by normal albumin-corrected calcium levels - normocalcemic PHPT (NHPT) – which may represent an early stage of HHPT. Nevertheless, there is limited data on how this variant presents clinically and biochemically.AimTo evaluate the de...

IntroductionDiabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the major comorbidities in patients with Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) leading to poorer outcomes. Previous evidence showed that poorly-controlled hyperglycemia increases the severity and mortality of COVID-19. Nevertheless, there is limited data on the role of in-hospital glucose control on the outcomes of elderly patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).Objective<p class="abs...

IntroductionIn march 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic registered its first cases in Portugal, leading the government to impose lockdown, in order to prevent the spread of cases. With social isolation and outpatient activity being ceased, there was an increase in mortality of non-COVID patients. The lockdown recommendations are in contradiction with comprehensive diabetes care and reflected in less regular patient-provider interactions, which in some cases con...