ESE Clinical Practice Guideline on functioning and nonfunctioning pituitary adenomas in pregnancy.

Pregnancies are rare in women with pituitary adenomas, which may relate to hormone excess from secretory subtypes such as prolactinomas or corticotroph adenomas. Decreased fertility may also result from pituitary hormone deficiencies due to compression of the gland by large tumours and/or surgical or radiation treatment of the lesion. Counselling premenopausal women with pituitary adenomas about their chance of conceiving spontaneously or with assisted reproductive technology, and the optimal pre-conception treatment, should start at the time of initial diagnosis. The normal physiological changes during pregnancy need to be considered when interpreting endocrine tests in women with pituitary adenomas. Dose adjustments in hormone substitution therapies may be needed across the trimesters. When medical therapy is used for pituitary hormone excess, consideration should be given to the known efficacy and safety data specific to pregnant women for each therapeutic option. In healthy women, pituitary gland size increases during pregnancy. Since some pituitary adenomas also enlarge during pregnancy, there is a risk of visual impairment, especially in women with macroadenomas or tumours near the optic chiasm. Pituitary apoplexy represents a rare acute complication of adenomas requiring surveillance, with surgical intervention needed in some cases. This guideline describes the choice and timing of diagnostic tests and treatments from the pre-conception stage until after delivery, taking into account adenoma size, location and endocrine activity. In most cases, pregnant women with pituitary adenomas should be managed by a multidisciplinary team in a centre specialised in the treatment of such tumours.

ESE audit on management of Adult Growth Hormone Deficiency in clinical practice.

Guidelines recommend adults with pituitary disease in whom GH therapy is contemplated, to be tested for GH deficiency (AGHD); however, clinical practice is not uniform. AIMS: 1) To record current practice of AGHD management throughout Europe and benchmark it against guidelines; 2) To evaluate educational status of healthcare professionals about AGHD. DESIGN: On-line survey in endocrine centres throughout Europe. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Endocrinologists voluntarily completed an electronic questionnaire regarding AGHD patients diagnosed or treated in 2017-2018. RESULTS: Twenty-eight centres from 17 European countries participated, including 2139 AGHD patients, 28% of childhood-onset GHD. Aetiology was most frequently non-functioning pituitary adenoma (26%), craniopharyngioma (13%) and genetic/congenital mid-line malformations (13%). Diagnosis of GHD was confirmed by a stimulation test in 52% (GHRH+arginine, 45%; insulin-tolerance, 42%, glucagon, 6%; GHRH alone and clonidine tests, 7%); in the remaining, ≥3 pituitary deficiencies and low serum IGF-I were diagnostic. Initial GH dose was lower in older patients, but only women <26 years were prescribed a higher dose than men; dose titration was based on normal serum IGF-I, tolerance and side-effects. In one country, AGHD treatment was not approved. Full public reimbursement was not available in four countries and only in childhood-onset GHD in another. AGHD awareness was low among non-endocrine professionals and healthcare administrators. Postgraduate AGHD curriculum training deserves being improved. CONCLUSION: Despite guideline recommendations, GH replacement in AGHD is still not available or reimbursed in all European countries. Knowledge among professionals and health administrators needs improvement to optimize care of adults with GHD.

Consequences of hyperthyroidism in male and female fertility: pathophysiology and current management.

Thyroid hormone acts on the oocytes, sperm and embryo during fertilization, implantation and placentation. Both hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism may influence fertility. However, evidence of the association of hyperthyroidism with infertility is scarce and sometimes conflicting. Thyroid hormone influences human reproduction via a variety of mechanisms at both the central and the peripheral level. Infertility may occur in hyperthyroid men and women, but it is usually reversible upon restoration of euthyroidism. This review aims to summarize the available data on the association of hyperthyroidism and infertility in both men and women and to provide practical suggestions for the management of these patients.

Obesity in the ageing man.

As the population is ageing globally, both ageing and obesity are recognized as major public health challenges. The aim of this narrative review is to present and discuss the current evidence on the changes in body composition, energy balance and endocrine environment that occur in the ageing man. Obesity in the ageing man is related to changes in both body weight and composition due to alterations in energy intake and total energy expenditure. In addition, somatopenia (decreased GH secretion), late-onset hypogonadism (LOH), changes in thyroid and adrenal function, as well as changes in appetite-related peptides (leptin, ghrelin) and, most importantly, insulin action are related to obesity, abnormal energy balance, redistribution of the adipose tissue and sarcopenia (decreased muscle mass). A better understanding of the complex relationship of ageing-related endocrine changes and obesity could lead to more effective interventions for elderly men.

Thyroid diseases and female reproduction.

Thyroid diseases are very common in women of reproductive age. The aim of this study was to review the current evidence on physiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis and management of women with thyroid disorders that are currently seeking fertility, undergoing assisted reproduction technologies (ART) or being pregnant. Normal thyroid function is essential for normal function of the gonadal axis, thus important in maintaining normal reproductive capacity. On the contrary, any type of thyroid dysfunction may reduce the likelihood of pregnancy; the latter can be restored to normal after appropriate treatment. Over eight million children have been born as a result of assisted reproduction techniques (ART) since 1978. As these procedures are becoming more common in clinical practice, the exact impact of thyroid status on reproductive outcomes as well as that of drugs used in ART on thyroid function has to be fully elucidated. Maternal thyroid function is crucial, especially during the first weeks of gestation, for offspring's wellness and brain development. On the other hand, normal physiological mechanisms during gestation can have a major impact on maternal thyroid function. As human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) has a thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH)-like effect, high hCG concentrations are associated with thyroid stimulation, both functionally (lower serum TSH concentrations) and anatomically (increased thyroid volume). Although the association between maternal hypothyroidism and increased perinatal morbidity has been described for over a century, more recently, even the presence of anti-thyroid antibodies has been associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes, such as recurrent abortions and placental abruption. This is of major clinical significance, as anti-thyroid antibodies are surprisingly prevalent in pregnancy, especially during the first two trimesters.

Increased serum C-reactive protein levels in normal weight women with polycystic ovary syndrome.

BACKGROUND: The clinical spectrum of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) includes components of the metabolic syndrome, such as central obesity, insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, arterial hypertension and, even, disturbances of the clotting mechanism. All these disorders are epidemiologically related to cardiovascular disease, most probably through low-grade intravascular chronic inflammation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the serum concentrations of high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), a non-specific marker of low-grade inflammation and a predictive marker for cardiovascular disease, in normal weight women with (PCOS). PATIENTS AND METHODS: One hundred and eighty-eight (188) normal weight [body mass index (BMI) < 25 kg/m(2)] women with PCOS were included in the study. Forty-three (43) normal weight women without PCOS (normal ovulation without clinical or biochemical hyperandrogenemia) served as controls. Serum samples for luteinizing hormone, folliclestimulating hormone, prolactin, total testosterone, Δ4-androstenedione, 17α-hydroxy-progesterone, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), insulin, glucose and hsCRP were collected in early follicular phase (third to sixth day) of a menstrual cycle in the control group or during a spontaneous bleeding episode in the PCOS group. RESULTS: Normal weight women with PCOS had higher concentrations of serum hsCRP as compared to normal weight women without PCOS (mean ± standard error of the mean 0.55 ± 0.08 versus 0.27 ± 0.08 mg/dL, p = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: As normal weight women with PCOS are characterized by elevated serum concentrations of hsCRP, they have to be considered as carrying at least one marker of low-grade inflammation.