Metastatic pituitary neuroendocrine neoplasms: A case report of a malignant prolactinoma.

We report a rare clinical case of a malignant prolactinoma in which the exponential increase of prolactin levels with minimal tumor growth and no response to treatment led to diagnosis of abdominal, thoracic, and vertebral metastases.

Adrenal Vein Sampling in the Management of Primary Aldosteronism: The Added Value of Intraprocedural Cortisol Assessment.

Introduction: Primary aldosteronism is the most common cause of secondary hypertension. Adrenal vein sampling is the gold standard for subtyping primary aldosteronism. However, this procedure is technically challenging and often has a low success rate. Our center is one of the very few performing this technique in our country with an increasing experience. Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of the cortisol intraprocedural assay in improving the performance of adrenal vein sampling. Design: We enrolled all of the patients with primary aldosteronism that underwent adrenal vein sampling from February 2016 to April 2023. The cortisol intraprocedural assay was introduced in October 2021. Methods: We enrolled a total of 50 adrenal vein samplings performed on 43 patients with the diagnosis of primary aldosteronism. In this sample, 19 patients and 24 patients underwent adrenal vein sampling before and after intraprocedural cortisol measurement, respectively. The procedure was repeated in seven patients (one before and six after intraprocedural cortisol measurement), given the unsuccess of the first exam. Selectivity of the adrenal vein sampling was assumed if the serum cortisol concentration from the adrenal vein was at least five times higher than that of the inferior vena cava. Lateralization was assumed if the aldosterone to cortisol ratio of one adrenal vein was at least four times the aldosterone to cortisol ratio of the contralateral side. Results: The mean age of the patients that underwent adrenal vein sampling (N = 43) was 55.2 ± 8.9 years, and 53.5% (n = 23) were female. The mean interval between the diagnosis of hypertension and the diagnosis of primary aldosteronism was 9.8 years (±9.9). At diagnosis, 62.8% of the patients (n = 27) had hypokalemia (mean value of 3 mmol/L (±0.34)), 88.4% (n = 38) had adrenal abnormalities on preprocedural CT scan, and 67.4% (n = 29) described as unilateral nodules. There were no statistically significant differences in the patients' baseline characteristics between the two groups (before and after intraprocedural cortisol measurement). Before intraprocedural cortisol measurement, adrenal vein sampling selectivity was achieved in 35% (n = 7) patients. Selectivity increased to 100% (30/30) after intraprocedural cortisol measurement (p < 0.001). With the exception of one patient who refused it, all patients with lateralized disease underwent unilateral adrenalectomy with normalization of the aldosterone to renin ratio postoperatively. Conclusions: The lack of effective alternatives in subtyping primary aldosteronism highlights the need to improve the success rate of adrenal vein sampling. In this study, intraprocedural cortisol measurement allowed a selectivity of 100%. Its addition to this procedure protocol should be considered, especially in centers with a low success rate.

Pituitary metastasis as the first manifestation of lung carcinoma.

Pituitary metastases are rare. Clinical presentation could range from asymptomatic to panhypopituitarism or local symptoms. We present a case report of a 43-year-old male patient with a new onset headache, visual disturbances, and panhypopituitarism. The investigation led to the diagnosis of pituitary metastasis as the first manifestation of underlying lung cancer.

Does the Hyperglycemia Impact on COVID-19 Outcomes Depend upon the Presence of Diabetes?-An Observational Study.

Diabetes mellitus (DM) has emerged as a major risk factor for COVID-19 severity and SARS-CoV-2 infection can worsen glycemic control and may precipitate new-onset diabetes. At-admission hyperglycemia (AH) is a known predictor for worse outcomes in many diseases and seems to have a similar effect in COVID-19 patients. In this study, we aimed to assess the impact of AH regardless of pre-existing diabetes mellitus and new-onset diabetes diagnosis in the clinical severity of COVID-19 inpatients in the first months of the pandemic. A retrospective monocentric study on 374 COVID-19 inpatients (209 males) was developed to assess associations between AH (blood glucose levels in the Emergency Department or the first 24 h of hospitalization greater than 140 mg/dL) and severity outcomes (disease severity, respiratory support, admission to Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and mortality) in patients with and without diabetes. Considering diabetic patients with AH (N = 68;18.1%) there was a correlation with COVID-19 severity (p = 0.03), invasive mechanical ventilation (p = 0.008), and ICU admission (p = 0.026). No correlation was present with any severity outcomes in diabetic patients without AH (N = 33; 8.8%). All of the New-onset Diabetes patients (N = 15; 4%) had AH, and 12 had severe COVID-19; additionally, five patients were admitted to the ICU and three patients died. However, severity outcomes did not reach statistical correlation significance in this group. In nondiabetic patients with AH (N = 51; 13.6%), there was a statistically significant association with the need for oxygen therapy (p = 0.001), invasive mechanical ventilation (p = 0.01), and ICU admission (p = 0.03). Our results support data regarding the impact of AH on severity outcomes. It also suggests an effect of AH on the prognosis of COVID-19 inpatients, regardless of the presence of pre-existing diabetes or new-onset diabetes. We reinforce the importance to assess at admission glycemia in all patients admitted with COVID-19.

A Common Variant in the CDK8 Gene Is Associated with Sporadic Pituitary Adenomas in the Portuguese Population: A Case-Control Study.

The majority of pituitary adenomas occur in a sporadic context, and in the absence of known genetic predisposition. Three common variants at the NEBL (rs2359536), PCDH15 (rs10763170) and CDK8 (rs17083838) loci were previously associated with sporadic pituitary adenomas in the Han Chinese population, but these findings have not yet been replicated in any other population. The aim of this case-control study was to assess if these variants are associated with susceptibility to sporadic pituitary adenomas in the Portuguese population. Genotype and allele frequencies were determined in 570 cases and in 546 controls. The CDK8 rs17083838 minor allele (A allele) was significantly associated with sporadic pituitary adenomas, under an additive (odds ratio (OR) 1.73, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.19-2.50, p = 0.004) and dominant (OR 1.82, 95% CI 1.24-2.68, p = 0.002) inheritance model. The NEBL rs2359536 and PCDH15 rs10763170 variants were not associated with the overall risk for the disease, although a borderline significant association was observed between the PCDH15 rs10763170 minor allele (T allele) and somatotrophinomas (dominant model, OR 1.55, 95% CI 1.02-2.35, p = 0.035). These findings suggest that the CDK8 rs17083838 variant, and possibly the PCDH15 rs10763170 variant, may increase susceptibility to sporadic pituitary adenomas in the Portuguese population.

Leydig cell tumour and mature ovarian teratoma: rare androgen-secreting ovarian tumours in postmenopausal women.

Androgen-secreting ovarian tumours are extremely rare accounting for <5% of all ovarian neoplasms. They are more frequent in postmenopausal women and should be suspected in the case of a rapid onset of androgenic symptoms. We report 4 cases of postmenopausal women who presented with signs of virilisation. All patients revealed increased serum levels of testosterone, normal dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate and negative pelvic ultrasound for adnexal masses. An androgen-secreting ovarian tumour was suspected and all of them were submitted to bilateral oophorectomy. Histology confirmed the diagnosis of Leydig cell tumours in 3 patients and mature teratoma in 1. A successful response to surgery, which includes a decline in serum androgen levels and signs of hyperandrogenism, was observed in our patients. This case series demonstrates that androgen-secreting ovarian neoplasms may not be detectable by imaging studies, but should be considered in the differential diagnosis of all postmenopausal women with signs of hyperandrogenism.