Endocrinology

Our Sept. list of top news & research includes a report on increased diagnoses of thyroid cancer and disturbing stats on diabetes prevalence in the US.

In an effort to fight obesity and diabetes and promote healthier diet and lifestyle choices through targeted interventions, public health officials determined which regions of the US have the highest levels of soda and other sugar-sweetened beverage consumption.

Study involving parents of children with type 1 diabetes mellitus shows they need support and assistance in helping their children make healthy dietary choices.

Study results show that treating community-dwelling elders too zealously for elevated thyroid-stimulating hormone levels is a leading cause of thyrotoxicosis.

Diabetic kidney disease can take various forms and affect patients in different ways. How the disease progresses and what can be done to slow that progression is the focus of many researchers in the field.

Diabetes itself, not any specific glucose-lowering drug, is likely to blame for an increased risk of pancreatic disease, Danish researchers report.

Massive weight loss (MWL) provides obvious health benefits, including reducing morbidity and mortality risks, but it brings some medical and psychological challenges as well. MWL patients are often left with excessive amounts of sagging skin, particularly in the thighs, under the arms, around the abdomen, and around the face.

Precision medicine's role in the management of hypogonadism is still in its formative stages. Researchers suggest that identifying biomarkers associated with individual patients' treatment responses is possible.

Researchers from the University of Washington in Seattle reported that the use of avatars (digital representations of a coach, buddy, or teacher) improved user satisfaction in interactive, online weight management programs for obese teens.

Study results show patients who took statins following ischemic stroke were significantly less likely to have post-stroke early-onset seizures.

In 2010, about 3% of Americans had tried e-cigarettes. Today, around 10% of the population has tried them, with sales growing every year.

Middle-aged men with prediabetes are more likely than healthy peers to suffer from depressive symptoms and signs of andropausal syndrome.

New research into distal pancreatectomies indicates that women and overweight patients have an elevated risk of suffering endocrine function impairment that leads to glucose intolerance and diabetes mellitus.

Bariatric surgery has been shown to reduce the incidence of type 2 diabetes and albuminuria. However, data connecting the magnitude of weight loss and reduction in obesity-related comorbidities is limited.

A study published in Metabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders indicates that sodium glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT2 inhibitors, which affect both supply and demand pathways in the heart) may be the preferred treatment for diabetics with heart failure.

Fetal exposure to severe starvation or stress appears to elevate risk of hyperglycemia or type 2 diabetes (T2D) later in life. Similarly, low birth weight has been associated with glucose intolerance, suppressed insulin secretory capacity, and increased risk of T2D.

The connection between diabetes and gout is more complicated than thought. Individuals with type 2 diabetes are at increased risk of developing gout, but not because they have diabetes.

Children with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)/mixed connective tissue disease (MCTD) often suffer from significant bouts of depression and potentially suicide ideation, a study in the Journal of Pediatrics determined.

A study in Postᶒpy adds to the growing evidence of a link between insulin and carbohydrate metabolism in the etiology and severity of acne vulgaris. While the clinical evidence on this connection is still disputed, the majority of recent studies has pointed to a significant connection between the condition and insulin levels.

There appears to be a positive correlation between higher antibiotic use and the development of type 2 diabetes, according to a study published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

New research on the link between diabetes and pancreatitis has shown a strong association between the severity of pancreatic dysfunction and subsequent risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus.

The US Food and Drug administration today issued a warning that the type 2 diabetes medicines sitagliptin (Januvia/Merck) linagliptin (Tradjenta/BI), and alogliptin (Nesina/Takeda) "may cause joint pain that can be severe and disabling."

A systematic review of alopecia areata (AA) in Clinical, Cosmetic & Investigational Dermatology highlighted the unpredictability and lack of treatment options for the condition. But it also pointed to a larger problem: more than half of patients with AA experience poor health-related quality of life (QOL). Patients with AA are at risk for depression and anxiety, atopy, vitiligo, thyroid disease, and other autoimmune conditions.

It is unclear how many people have pituitary incidentaloma, but imaging and autopsy studies indicate they are quite common and occur in up to one-third of patients. Fortunately, the vast majority of these serendipitously discovered tumors are clinically insignificant. A management guideline in the Annals of Endocrinology brings endocrinologists up to date on current thinking about pituitary incidentaloma management.

Most self-improvement intervention programs rely on self-monitoring, or increased awareness of bad habits, to help people change their behaviors. Traditionally, programs have used diaries, calendar notes, or check-ins at daily or weekly meetings to help individuals recognize and replace unhelpful routines. The October 2015 issue of Telemedicine and e-Health includes a study that describes how simple electronic feedback can help people with weight problems.

New research concludes that the association between celiac disease and exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI) is strong enough that physicians should check for EPI when celiac patients suffer malnutrition or gastric distress despite adherence to prescribed diets.

Dr. Unger helps us kick off the Meet the Board series. Over the coming months the series will introduce you to the Endocrinology Network board.

Patients with the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator gating mutation G551D have insufficient ion transport due to reduced channel-open probability. New information suggests that increased ion transport reduces disease burden in the pancreas, which prevents cystic fibrosis patients from digesting food properly and leads to exocrine pancreatic insufficiency in up to 90% of all cases.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is now the most common chronic liver disease reported in the United States. Some researchers have hypothesized that TNF-α, as a mediator of inflammation, might be a therapeutic target for NAFLD since inflammation seems to be a component of its etiology.