Adrenal Incidentaloma: Prevalence and Referral Patterns From Routine Practice in a Large UK University Teaching Hospital.

CONTEXT: Adrenal incidentalomas (AIs) are increasingly being identified during unrelated imaging. Unlike AI clinical management, data on referral patterns in routine practice are lacking. OBJECTIVE: This work aimed to identify factors associated with AI referral. METHODS: We linked data from imaging reports and outpatient bookings from a large UK teaching hospital. We examined (i) AI prevalence and (ii) pattern of referral to endocrinology, stratified by age, imaging modality, scan anatomical site, requesting clinical specialty, and temporal trends. Using key radiology phrases to identify scans reporting potential AI, we identified 4097 individuals from 479 945 scan reports (2015-2019). Main outcome measures included prevalence of AI and referral rates. RESULTS: Overall, AI lesions were identified in 1.2% of scans. They were more prevalent in abdomen computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging scans (3.0% and 0.6%, respectively). Scans performed increased 7.7% year-on-year from 2015 to 2019, with a more pronounced increase in the number with AI lesions (14.7% per year).Only 394 of 4097 patients (9.6%) had a documented endocrinology referral code within 90 days, with medical (11.8%) more likely to refer than surgical (7.2%) specialties (P < .001). Despite prevalence increasing with age, older patients were less likely to be referred (P < .001). CONCLUSION: While overall AI prevalence appeared low, scan numbers are large and rising; the number with identified AI are increasing still further. The poor AI referral rates, even in centers such as ours where dedicated AI multidisciplinary team meetings and digital management systems are used, highlights the need for new streamlined, clinically effective systems and processes to appropriately manage the AI workload.

Cushing's syndrome: a practical approach to diagnosis and differential diagnoses.

Diagnosis of Cushing's syndrome (CS) and identification of the aetiology of hypercortisolism can be challenging. The Endocrine Society clinical practice guidelines recommends one of the four tests for initial screening of CS, namely, urinary-free cortisol, late night salivary cortisol, overnight dexamethasone suppression test or a longer low-dose dexamethasone suppression test, for 48 hours. Confirmation and localisation of CS requires additional biochemical and radiological tests. Radiological evaluation involves different imaging modalities including MRI with or without different radio-nuclear imaging techniques. Invasive testing such as bilateral inferior petrosal sinus sampling may be necessary in some patients for accurate localisation of the cause for hypercortisolism. This best practice review discusses a practical approach for the diagnostic evaluation of CS with a brief discussion on differential diagnoses, and cyclical CS, to enhance the skills of clinicians and laboratory personnel.

A study in high-risk, maximally pretreated patients to determine the potential use of PCSK9 inhibitors at various thresholds of total and LDL cholesterol levels.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY: Statins and ezetimibe reduce low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) inhibitors lower LDL-c by 50%-70% and might be useful in refractory patients. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) technology appraisal guidance (TAG) recommends use of these drugs in secondary prevention and familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) at differing LDL-c thresholds. We have estimated the proportion of patients in whom this third-line drug might be useful. STUDY DESIGN: We used data from a lipid-lowering audit programme to study 72 with FH and/or CVD of 271 patients referred over 12 months who failed to achieve target total cholesterol (TC) and LDL-c levels. All 72 patients were treated with ezetimibe, and 69 cases also received statins. We used LDL-c thresholds 1.5-5.5 mmol/L to estimate how many of these refractory patients could benefit from PCSK9 inhibitors. RESULTS: In 72 patients, TC and LDL-c targets were not met by 64 and 53 patients, respectively. We judged using the NICE TAG that only one patient (1.4% ezetimibe requiring and 0.4% total referrals) required a PCSK9 inhibitor. CONCLUSIONS: We determined that the proportion of patients eligible for a PCSK9 inhibitor at various TC and LDL-c levels is modest. This may reflect the use of all available statins in UK lipid clinics often at non-daily frequency. We suggest that cost-effective use of PCSK9 inhibitors requires prescribing being restricted to clinicians working in specialised lipid clinics.

Urine microalbumin excretion in relation to exercise-induced electrocardiographic myocardial ischaemia.

BACKGROUND: Microalbuminuria, a marker of endothelial cell dysfunction, is associated with atherosclerosis and is a predictor of coronary heart disease. It has been suggested that patients with coronary heart disease have exaggerated exercise-induced urinary microalbumin excretion but this is controversial. We, therefore, measured urine microalbumin excretion in men before and after an exercise electrocardiogram. MATERIAL/METHODS: Urine microalbumin excretion expressed as the albumin-creatinine ratio (ACR) was measured before and after an exercise electrocardiogram in 10 subjects with exercise-induced myocardial ischaemia and 14 subjects without exercise-induced myocardial ischaemia. RESULTS: In subjects with a positive exercise electrocardiogram, the pre-exercise electrocardiogram ACR 3.3 +/- 5.50; (mean+/-SD) significantly increased (p=0.0371) following exercise (6.30 +/-10.25). In subjects with a negative exercise electrocardiogram, the pre-exercise electrocardiogram ACR (0.73 +/-0.52) also significantly increased (p=0.0295) following exercise (2.04 +/-1.81). Pre-exercise ACR was higher (p=0.0164) in subjects with a positive exercise electrocardiogram (3.3 +/-5.50) than in those subjects with a negative exercise electrocardiogram (0.73 +/-0.52). Incremental and post-exercise ACR were not significantly different in those with normal and abnormal exercise electrocardiograms. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with exercise-induced myocardial ischaemia have pre-exercise urine microalbumin excretion. Exaggerated urine microalbumin excretion in response to exercise is not associated with exercise-induced myocardial ischaemia.