Andrew N. Margioris
We welcome you to the 2013 third trimester issue of Hormones! In this issue, the Reviews section includes four papers …
Issue 3 (July-September)123
Lessons derived from studies in the elderly: the role of nutrition education in cardiovascular disease prevention
Demosthenes B. Panagiotakos
Based on statistics from the World Health Organization (WHO), the proportion of people over the age of 60 years is growing faster than any other age-group and, in many countries, it is the fastest growing segment of the population …
PET and PET/CT imaging in thyroid and adrenal diseases: an update
Giorgio Treglia, Luca Giovanella, Vittoria Rufini
Positron emission tomography (PET) and PET/computed tomography (PET/CT) with different tracers are imaging methods increasingly used in patients with thyroid and adrenal diseases. The aim of this article is to provide an overview based on literature data about the usefulness of PET imaging in this setting …
Premenopause: The endocrinology of reproductive decline
Menelaos L. Batrinos
The ovaries follow a different course of aging from the other endocrine glands and organs. Instead of an inevitable progressive deterioration with advancing age, like all other structures and functions of the organism, including the male gonad, the testis, in the late thirties the ovaries undergo an abrupt diminution …
The “depressive” face of osteoporosis and the “osteoporotic” face of depression
Kyriakos Aloumanis, Kostantinos Mavroudis
Osteoporosis and depression are two chronic diseases that affect large population groups with great impact on morbidity, mortality and quality of life. An association between osteoporosis and depression has been described in the literature …
Metabolic and other effects of pioglitazone as an add-on therapy to metformin in the treatment of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
Georgios Valsamakis, Kostas Lois, Sudhesh Kumar, George Mastorakos
Insulin resistance is a key pathogenic defect of the clustered metabolic disturbances seen in polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Metformin is an insulin sensitizer acting in the liver and the peripheral tissues that ameliorates the metabolic and reproductive defects in PCOS …
A 50-year follow-up of the Seven Countries Study: Prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors, food and nutrient intakes among Cretans
Christos M. Hatzis, Christopher Papandreou, Evridiki Patelarou, Constantine I. Vardavas, Eleni Kimioni, Dimitra Sifaki-Pistolla, Anna Vergetaki, Anthony G. Kafatos
OBJECTIVE: To identify the cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk-factor status and dietary habits of the surviving elderly participants of the initial Seven Countries Study (SCS) cohort and newly recruited middle-aged men from the same villages …
Impact of religiosity/spirituality on biological and preclinical markers related to cardiovascular disease. Results from the SPILI III study
Dimitrios Anyfantakis, Emmanouil K. Symvoulakis, Demosthenes B. Panagiotakos, Dimitrios Tsetis, Elias Castanas, Sue Shea, Maria Venihaki, Christos Lionis
OBJECTIVE: This study aimed at exploring to what extent psychosocial factors, such as religiosity/spirituality and sense of coherence, mediate the negative effects of stress on a variety of cardiometabolic indicators, i.e., hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease, and atherosclerotic bio-clinical markers …
Decreased circulating 25-(OH) Vitamin D concentrations in obese female children and adolescents: Positive associations with Retinol Binding Protein-4 and Neutrophil Gelatinase-associated Lipocalin
Dimitra Metheniti, Sophia Sakka, Maria Dracopoulou, Alexandra Margeli, Ioannis Papassotiriou, Christina Kanaka-Gantenbein, George P. Chrousos, Panagiota Pervanidou
OBJECTIVE: Hypovitaminosis D has been associated with adult as well as childhood obesity. Retinol-binding-protein-4 (RBP-4) and Neutrophil Gelatinase-associated Lipocalin (NGAL) are altered in obese individuals. The aim of this study was to examine circulating 25-(OH) Vitamin D (25-(OH) D) concentrations …
Sex steroids and sex hormone-binding globulin in postmenopausal women with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
Stergios A. Polyzos, Jannis Kountouras, Agathocles Tsatsoulis, Efthimia Zafeiriadou, Evangelia Katsiki, Kalliopi Patsiaoura, Christos Zavos, Vasiliki V. Anastasiadou, Aristidis Slavakis
OBJECTIVE: The evaluation of serum sex steroids and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) levels in postmenopausal women with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and their association to the disease severity. DESIGN: Twenty-two postmenopausal women with biopsy-proven NAFLD …
Clinical utility of FDG-PET for diagnosis of adrenal mass: a large single-center experience
Allison Pitts, Grace Ih, Meng Wei, Deepti Dhall, Nicholas N. Nissen, Alan Waxman, Run Yu
OBJECTIVE: To examine the clinical utility of 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) for diagnosing whether an adrenal mass is malignant, in contemporary clinical practice. DESIGN: Retrospective medical record review of patients from 2 databases at a large hospital …
Results of the Thyroid Cancer Alliance international patient/survivor survey: Psychosocial/informational support needs, treatment side effects and international differences in care
Rita Banach, Beate Bartès, Kate Farnell, Harald Rimmele, Joan Shey, Susanne Singer, Frederik A. Verburg, Markus Luster, for the Thyroid Cancer Alliance
OBJECTIVE: To comprehensively assess the experience of a large, diverse cohort and identify potential care improvements, the Thyroid Cancer Alliance, an international patient/survivor group coalition, surveyed thyroid cancer patients/survivors worldwide …
Frax score calculations in postmenopausal women with subclinical hypothyroidism
Snezana Polovina, Vera Popovic, Leonidas Duntas, Natasa Milic, Dragan Micic
OBJECTIVE: The aim of our study was to evaluate the relationship between the elevated TSH and fracture risk in postmenopausal women with subclinical hypothyroidism for evaluation of individuals with a high risk for osteoporotic fractures. DESIGN: FRAX score calculation (10-year estimated risk for bone fracture) …
Pulmonary arterial sampling was useful for localizing ectopic ACTH production in a patient with bronchial carcinoid causing Cushing syndrome
Ikki Sakuma, Jun Saito, Yoko Matsuzawa, Masao Omura, Seiji Matsui, Takamitsu Maehara, Naoki Hasegawa, Tetsuo Nishikawa
OBJECTIVE: We report a 44-year old man with ectopic adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) syndrome caused by bronchial carcinoid that developed Cushing syndrome. METHODS: We performed several imaging studies, including chest and abdominal CT, for exploration of nodules and selective pulmonary …
Familial isolated primary hyperparathyroidism due to HRPT2 mutation
Adina Ghemigian, Mircea Ghemigian, Irina Popescu, Lavinia Vija, Eugenia Petrova, Nicoleta Dumitru, Dumitru Ioachim
Primary hyperparathyroidism is a common endocrine disorder that is mostly caused by solitary tumors within the parathyroid glands. Characterized by early debut and higher frequency of multiple parathyroid masses, familial forms of primary hyperparathyroidism are caused by the already known mutations …
A case of Dyke-Davidoff-Masson syndrome associated with central hypothyroidism and secondary adrenal insufficiency
Jong Wook Kim, Eun Sook Kim, Woojun Kim, Young Do Kim, Eun Young Mo, Sung Dae Moon, Je Ho Han
A diagnosis of central hypothyroidism (CH) can be missed easily or delayed without a high index of suspicion due to normal or slightly altered thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) levels during the initial screening test for thyroid dysfunction …
Family history in the diagnosis of monogenic diabetes “leads and misleads”
Cristina Colom, Josep Oriola, Silvia Martínez, Francisco Blanco-Vaca, Roser Casamitjana, Rosa Corcoy
Always granting that de novo mutations are possible, family history and biological characteristics are nonetheless crucial for the diagnosis of monogenic diabetes. We report here the case of two patients with monogenic diabetes in which the initial family history misled the diagnostic work-up and did not support the diagnosis …
The antiepileptic drug carbamazepine can cause adrenal insufficiency in patients under hormone replacement therapy for congenital adrenal hyperplasia
Damiano Gullo, Rossella Gelsomino, Ilenia Marturano, Domenico Restivo, Maria Luisa Arpi, Daniela Leonardi, Giuseppina Parrinello, Sebastiano Squatrito
Classic congenital adrenal hyperplasia due to 21-hydroxylase deficiency (21-OH CAH) is treated with both glucocorticoids (to suppress pituitary ACTH and adrenal androgen production) and mineralocorticoids (to reduce angiotensin II concentrations) …
Hypertensive crisis during adrenalectomy in a patient with pheochromocytoma and a HOCM with SAM
Allard Dijkhuizen, Leonie Theresia van Hulsteijn, Bert Bonsing, Eleonora P.M. Corssmit, Sharita R Ramautar, Leon P.H.J. Aarts, Jaap Vuyk
Adrenalectomy for pheochromocytoma (PCC) is generally performed after preparation with α- and β-sympathicolytic agents to blunt the effects of the elevated catecholamine output. In patients also known to have hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, this preoperative workup …