ENDOCRINOLOGY Flashcards
what is acromegaly?
excess GH secretion
what are the complications associated with acromegaly?
- cardiomyopathy, arrhythmia, valvular, and ischaemic heart disease
- Hypertension
- Sleep apnoea
- Diabetes.
- Pre-cancerous polyps and colorectal cancer
- Bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome
what are the clinical features of acromegaly?
- Coarse facial appearance including frontal bossing, enlarged nose, prognathism, separation of teeth, and macroglossia.
- Increase in size of hands, the patient may complain that their wedding ring no longer fits.
- Increase in size of feet, the patient may complain that their shoes no longer fit.
- Excessive sweating.
- Joint pain and dysfunction.
- Snoring.
- Alteration in sexual functioning.
- Fatigue.
- Features of pituitary tumour include headache and bitemporal hemianopia.
how is acromegaly diagnosed?
- elevated serum IGF-1
- OGTT with no suppression of GH
- pituitary adenoma on MRI
how is acromegaly managed?
- trans-sphenoidal tumour resection
- octreotide
- carbergoline if mixed GH/prolactin secretion
- pegvisomant
what is Addison’s disease?
primary adrenal insufficiency
what are the clinical features of Addison’s disease?
- Fatigue.
- Anorexia.
- Weight loss.
- Hyper-pigmentation in primary adrenal insufficiency (A lack of ACTH production means a lack of melanocyte stimulating hormone)
- Salt craving.
- History of other autoimmune disease such as pernicious anaemia and coeliac disease.
- History of worsening hypothyroidism symptoms when levothyroxine is started.
what are the clinical features of Addison’s adrenal crisis?
- Hypotension.
- Hypovolaemic shock.
- Acute abdominal pain.
- Fever.
- Vomiting.
how is Addison’s disease diagnosed?
ACTH stimulation test: no change in serum cortisol
how is Addison’s disease managed?
- Offer glucocorticoid replacement therapy (hydrocortisone 20 mg daily in 3 divided doses).
- Offer mineralocorticoid replacement therapy (fludrocortisone 0.2 mg orally once daily).
- Offer androgen replacement (dehydroepiandrosterone) for women with decreased libido.
how is an adrenal crisis managed?
- Administer intravenous hydrocortisone (100 mg every 6-8 hours for 1-3 days).
- Administer 1 litre of 0.9% saline over 60 minutes if there is hypotension and dehydration.
- Administer 5% dextrose if there is hypoglycaemia.
how should the dose of glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid be altered on a sick day in Addison’s?
- double glucocorticoid
- mineralocorticoid stay the same
how is congenital adrenal hyperplasia inherited?
-autosomal recessive
what are the clinical features of a salt wasting crisis in congenital adrenal hyperplasia?
- Hypotension.
- tachycardia.
- Vomiting.
- Poor feeding.
- Failure to thrive.
- Progression to adrenal crisis.
what are the features of congenital adrenal hyperplasia in non-salt wasting patients?
- Virilisation of female genitalia such as enlarged clitoris, fused labia, and a urogenital sinus.
- Small testes and hyper pigmentation of scrotum in male.
- Hirsutism.
- Precocious puberty.
- Short stature.
- Irregular menses.
- Infertility.
- Male-pattern baldness.
how is congenital adrenal hyperplasia diagnosed?
- Measure serum 17-hydroxyprogesterone levels: Elevated for age.
- Perform a rapid ACTH stimulation test to establish the diagnosis: 17-hydroxyprogesterone levels remain high.
what is seen on blood gas in a salt wasting crisis?
- Hyponatraemia
- Hyperkalaemia
- Metabolic acidosis in a salt wasting crisis and hypoglycaemia.
how is congenital adrenal hyperplasia managed?
lifelong hydrocortisone and fludrocortisone
what are the clinical features of a craniopharyngioma?
- Acute loss of vision, such as a bitemporal hemianopia affecting the lower quadrant.
- Growth failure.
- Difficulty concentrating.
- Macrocephaly (hydrocephalus).
- Amenorrhoea.
- Erectile dysfunction.
- Headache.
- Galactorrhoea.
how is a craniopharyngioma managed?
- Perform surgical biopsy and resection.
- Offer endocrine replacement therapy.
what are the causes of Cushing’s syndrome?
- exogenous corticosteroids
- An ACTH secreting pituitary adenoma, this is known as Cushing’s disease.
- An ACTH secreting small cell lung cancer.
- A cortisol secreting adrenal adenoma, this causes low ACTH via negative feedback.
what are the complications of cushing’s syndrome?
- Cardiovascular disease.
- Hypertension.
- Diabetes mellitus.
- Osteoporosis.
- Nephrolithiasis.
- Nelson’s syndrome after bilateral adrenalectomy.
what are the symptoms of cushing’s syndrome?
- Central weight gain.
- Amenorrhoea.
- Poor libido.
- Hirsutism and acne.
what are the signs of Cushing’s syndrome?
- Facial plethora and supraclavicular fullness.
- Thin skin.
- Easy bruising.
- Striae.
- Proximal myopathy.
how is Cushing’s diagnosed?
- Perform 1 mg overnight dexamethasone suppression test: Raised morning cortisol.
- Perform 24-hour urinary free cortisol: Elevated.
- Measure serum ACTH: Raised in Cushing’s disease or ectopic ACTH secretion; Low with adrenal adenoma.
How is Cushing’s syndrome managed?
- Offer medical therapy (metyrapone or ketoconazole) prior to surgery
- Perform trans-sphenoidal pituitary adenomectomy as the first line management of Cushing’s disease.
- Perform surgical resection of a bronchial tumour if there is ectopic ACTH secretion.
- Perform unilateral adrenalectomy if there is a unilateral adrenal adenoma or carcinoma, with adjunct chemotherapy for patients with adrenal carcinoma.
what are the causes of cranial diabetes insipidus?
- Trans-sphenoidal pituitary surgery usually for a pituitary adenoma.
- Craniopharyngioma or pituitary stalk lesions.
- Autoimmune disorders such as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and type 1 diabetes.
- Subarachnoid haemorrhage and traumatic brain injury.
- Wolfram’s syndrome (DIDMOAD), a syndrome comprising diabetes insipidus, diabetes mellitus, optic atrophy, and deafness, due to mutations in the WFS1 gene.
what are the causes of nephrogenic diabetes insipidus?
- Medications such as lithium, gentamicin and rifampicin.
- Systemic disease including chronic kidney disease, renal amyloidosis, and hypercalcaemia.
- Inherited as a sex-lined recessive disease.
what are the clinical features of diabetes insipidus?
- Polyuria.
- Polydipsia.
- Nocturia.
- Dilute urine.
- Signs of volume depletion e.g. dry mucus membranes, reduced skin turbot, tachycardia, and postural hypotension.
- Features of hypernatraemia such as irritability, restlessness, lethargy, muscle twitching.
how is diabetes insipidus diagnosed?
- urine osmolality <300mmol/kg
- elevated serum osmolality
- elevated sodium and low potassium
- urine osmolality <300mmol/kg following water deprivation test
- ADH simulation test: urine osmolality greater than 750mmol/kg in cranial, no increase in nephrogenic
how is cranial diabetes insipidus managed?
-desmopressin
how is nephrogenic diabetes insipidus managed?
- Offer a thiazide diuretic (hydrochlorothiazide).
- Recommend adequate fluid intake.
- Correct underlying cause for nephrogenic diabetes insipidus, including discontinuing an offending drugs (lithium or gentamicin), treating underlying kidney disease, and correcting electrolyte disturbances.
what is the triad of diabetic ketoacidosis?
- hyperglycaemia
- hyperketonaemia
- metabolic acidosis.
what are the clinical features of DKA?
- Known diabetes.
- Features of diabetes such as polyuria, polydypsia, weight loss.
- Nausea and vomiting.
- Abdominal pain.
- Hyperventilation (Kussmaul respiration).
- Dehydration suggested by dry mucus membranes, decreased skin turgor, slow capillary refill, tachycardia with a weak pulse, hypotension.
- Reduced consciousness.
- Acetone smell on breath.
What is seen on blood gas in DKA?
- Metabolic acidosis with raised anion gap
- Bicarbonate less than 15 mmol/L.
how is DKA managed?
- Fluids
- IV insulin with glucose and potassium
what are the risk factors for diabetic nephropathy?
- Poorly controlled diabetes and sustained hyperglycaemia.
- Uncontrolled hypertension.
- Family history of hypertension or kidney disease.
- Obesity.
- Smoking.
what are the clinical features of diabetic nephropathy?
- Oedema which may be severe and generalised (anasarca).
- Fatigue.
- Anorexia.
- Nausea and vomiting.
- Altered taste.
- Hiccups supervene.
how is diabetic nephropathy diagnosed?
- proteinuria
- Elevated albumin:creatinine ration
- reduced eGFR
how is diabetic nephropathy managed?
- good glycemic control
- ACE inhibitor or ARB
- CCB or thiazide as an add on
- statin
how is diabetic neuropathy managed?
- Offer a choice of duloxetine, gabapentin, pregabalin or amitriptyline, as initial treatment for neuropathic plan.
- Refer to pain management clinic in resistant painful neuropathy.
- Offer midodrine for postural hypotension.
- Offer alternating use of erythromycin and metoclorpanide for gastroparesis.
- Offer metronidazole for diabetic diarrhoea.
- Offer catheterisation a parasympathomimetic (bethanechol) for bladder dysfunction.
- Offer a PDE5 inhibitor (sildenafil) for erectile dysfunction.
what are the clinical features of diabetic foot disease?
- Foot ulcer.
- Foot pain.
- Foot erythema.
- Oedema of the foot, ankle or calf.
- Absent pedal pulses
- Malaise and anorexia.
how should an infected diabetic foot ulcer be managed?
- Offer flucloxacillin for a mild diabetic foot infection (erythema must be less than 2 cm around the ulcer).
- Offer intravenous clindamycin for moderate (erythema is more 2 cm around the ulcer) or severe (signs of systemic inflammatory response syndrome) foot infection.
- Perform amputation in areas of irreversible gangrene.
how is diabetic retinopathy managed?
- observation for non-proliferative diabetic nephropathy.
- Perform urgent pan-retinal photocoagulation for proliferative diabetic nephropathy.
- Perform vitrectomy for proliferative diabetic nephropathy that is not amenable to pan-retinal photocoagulation
which drugs causes gynaecomastia?
- phenytoin
- oestrogens
- spironolactone
- cimetidine
- digoxin
- marijuana
- goserelin
what are the causes of hypercalaemia?
- malignancy
- Primary multiple endocrine neoplasia
- Familial hypocalciuric hypercalcaemia
- Granulomatous disease (TB and sarcoidosis).
- Drugs (lithium and thiazides).
- Vitamins (vitamin A and D)
- hyperparathyroidism
what are the clinical features of hypercalcaemia?
- Confusion.
- Fatigue.
- Constipation.
- Loss of appetite.
- Nausea.
- Polyuria.
- Polydypsia.
- Poor skin turgor.
- Bone pain.
how is hypercalcaemia managed?
- Administer intravenous normal saline as the first line treatment when serum calcium exceeds 3.0 mmol/L.
- Administer an intravenous bisphosphonate (zoledronic acid or pamidronate disodium).
- Offer calcitonin while awaiting the effect of bisphosphonate as it has a more rapid correction of hypercalcaemia.
- Offer a loop diuretic (furosemide) to manage fluid overload.
what factors precipitate hyperosmolar hyperglycaemic state?
- infection
- stroke
- MI
- trauma
- hyperthyroidism
- acromegaly
- thiazide diuretics
- beta blockers
what are the clinical features of hyperosmolar hyperglycaemic state?
- Altered mental status.
- Weakness.
- Classical features of diabetes including polyuria, polydypsia and weight loss.
- Features of dehydration including dry mucus membranes, poor skin turgor, tachycardia and hypotension.
- Seizures.
how is hyperosmolar hyperglycaemic state managed?
- Administer 0.9% NaCl at a rate of 15 to 12 ml/kg/hour.
- Administer a vasopressor (noradrenaline) if hypotension persists after forced hydration.
- Start insulin therapy (insulin neutral) with a bolus of 0.1 units/kg unless the potassium is less than 3.3 mmol/L, in which case it must be delayed and potassium chloride should be given.
what are the clinical features of hyperparathyroidism?
- Fatigue.
- Poor sleep.
- Myalgia.
- Anxiety.
- Depression.
- Polydypsia.
- Polyuria.
- Memory loss.
- Bone pain.
- Constipation.
- Muscle cramps.
- Paraesthesia.
- Renal colic.
- Abdominal pain.
- Features of chronic kidney disease.
- Features of malabsorption syndrome.
how is hyperparathyroidism diagnosed?
- hypercalcaemia with normal or elevated PTH
- elevated ALP and phosphate
how is primary hyperparathyroidism?
- parathyroidectomy
- Consider a calcimimetic (cinacalcet) for patients in whom surgery is unsuccessful, is unsuitable or has been declined.
- Consider a bisphosphonate (alendronate) to reduce fracture risk in patients who have an increased fracture risk.
how is secondary hyperparathyroidism managed?
- Recommend safe sun exposure for patients who have had a lack of sunlight exposure.
- Optimise management of underlying disease, such as Crohn’s disease or Coeliac disease.
- Recommend dietary phosphate restriction and offer a phosphate binder (sevelamer) for patients with CKD stage 3 or 4.
- Offer vitamin D sterol (calcitriol) or parathyroidectomy for patients with CKD stage 5.
what are the causes of hyperthyroidism?
- Graves’ disease
- toxic multinodular goitre
- toxic adenoma
- molar pregnancy
- amiodarone
- struma ovarii
- de quervain’s thyroiditis
what is graves’ eye disease?
- exophthalmos (anterior bulging of the eyes)
- upper eyelid retraction
- lid lag
- erythema
- oedema of the extraocular muscles, typically the inferior rectus, producing diplopia.
what is graves’ dermopathy?
- accumulation of mucopolysaccharides in the deep dermis of the skin
- peau d’orange (orange peel) appearance of the skin over the anterior aspect of the lower legs.
what is graves’ acropachy?
- clubbing
- swollen fingers
- periosteal knee bone
what are the clinical features of hyperthyroidism?
- Heat intolerance.
- Sweating.
- Weight loss despite increased appetite.
- Palpitations.
- Fast, fine tremor.
- Hyperreflexia.
- Orbitopathy (exophthalmos, diplopia, lid retraction, lid lag, erythema, oedema).
- Warm, moist hands.
- Compression symptoms including dysphagia, breathlessness, hoarse voice.
- Irritability and agitation.
- Cardiac flow murmur.
- Muscle weakness, fatigue, and exercise intolerance.
- Muscle wasting.
- Reduced libido.
- Gynaecomastia in men.
- Amenorrhoea and oligomennorhoea.
- Painful goitre in de Quervain’s thyroiditis.
how is hyperthyroidism diagnosed?
- Measure serum TSH: Reduced in primary hyperthyroidism; Elevated in secondary hyperthyroidism.
- Measure free T3 and T4 if serum TSH is abnormal: Elevated, except in subclinical disease.
- Measure total T3/T4 or free T3/T4 ratio: Elevated in Graves’ disease and not in thyroiditis.
how is Graves’ disease managed?
- radioactive iodine
- antithyroid drugs (carbimazole, propylthiouracil)
- Offer total thyroidectomy for adults with Graves’ disease if there are concerns about compression, thyroid malignancy is suspected, or first line treatments are unsuitable.
how is Graves’ disease managed in children?
- antithyroid drugs are first line treatment
- should be continued for at least 2 years.
how is a toxic nodular goitre treated?
- Offer radioactive iodine as first line treatment for adults with toxic multinodular goitre.
- Offer total thyroidectomy or life-long antithyroid drugs
how is thyroid crisis managed?
- Offer high dose carbimazole, intravenous hydrocortisone, iodine (Lugol solution), and oral propranolol.
- Offer cholestyramine to reduce the enterohepatic circulation of thyroid hormones.
what are the causes of primary hypogonadism in men?
- Klinefelter’s syndrome.
- Kallman’s syndrome.
- Orchitis related to mumps or an autoimmune disease.
- Drugs such as cyclophosphamide and chlorambucil.
- Testicular trauma or torsion.
what are the causes of secondary hypogonadism in men?
- Hyperprolactinaemia, as prolactin suppresses GnRH.
- Pituitary adenoma and craniopharyngioma.
- Infiltrative diseases such as haemochromatosis, sarcoidosis, and histiocytosis.
- Head trauma or surgery.
what are the clinical features of hypogonadism in men?
- Decreased libido.
- Loss of spontaneous morning erections.
- Erectile dysfunction.
- Gynaecomastia.
- Infertility.
- Micropenis and small testes.
- Delayed puberty.