Differences in biomechanical and metabolic factors between patients with frozen shoulder and asymptomatic individuals. A cross-sectional study.

Background: the pathogenesis of frozen shoulder (FS) is thought to be one of inflammation and fibrosis possibly influenced by hyperglycemia. Biomechanical changes of the shoulder joint in terms of muscle strength, scapular kinematics and proprioception might occur in FS.

Objectives: to compare muscle strength, scapular kinematics, proprioception, and blood glucose levels within patients with FS and to asymptomatic individuals.

Diabetes or endocrinopathy admitted in the COVID-19 ward.

The Covid-19 pandemic confronted us with unknown clinical pictures, also in diabetology and endocrinology. Sharing clinical experiences is therefore of enormous importance. Actually, information about the care given in the Covid-19 ward (in contrast to that provided in the Emergency Room/ICU) is still sparse.

The Cushing Reflex: Oliguria as a Reflection of an Elevated Intracranial Pressure.

Oliguria is one of the clinical hallmarks of renal failure. The broad differential diagnosis is well known, but a rare cause of oliguria is intracranial hypertension (ICH). The actual knowledge to explain this relationship is scarce.

Early Maternal Thyroid Function During Gestation Is Associated With Fetal Growth, Particularly in Male Newborns.

Background: Intrauterine growth patterns are influenced by maternal thyroid function during gestation and by fetal sex. It is unknown, however, whether the relationships between maternal thyrotropin (TSH) and free thyroxine (fT4) levels in early pregnancy and fetal growth outcomes are modified by fetal sex.

Design: Data were obtained from a community-based cohort study of pregnant women living in Amsterdam (Amsterdam Born Children and Their Development study).

The prolactin receptor is expressed in rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis synovial tissue and contributes to macrophage activation.

Objectives: Prolactin (PRL) is a lactation-inducing hormone with immunomodulatory properties and is found at elevated levels in the serum of patients with RA and other rheumatic diseases. The PRL receptor (PRLR) has been shown to be expressed by macrophages in atherosclerotic plaques. The aim of this study was to examine PRLR expression by synovial macrophages and its role in the regulation of macrophage activation.

Cardiac Autonomic Nervous System Activation and Metabolic Profile in Young Children: The ABCD Study.

Background: In adults, increased sympathetic and decreased parasympathetic nervous system activity are associated with a less favorable metabolic profile. Whether this is already determined at early age is unknown. Therefore, we aimed to assess the association between autonomic nervous system activation and metabolic profile and its components in children at age of 5-6 years.

Prolactin receptor antagonism uncouples lipids from atherosclerosis susceptibility.

The pituitary-derived hormone prolactin has been suggested to stimulate the development of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease through its effects on metabolism and inflammation. In this study, we aimed to challenge the hypothesis that inhibition of prolactin function may beneficially affect atherosclerosis burden. Hereto, atherosclerosis-susceptible LDL receptor (Ldlr) knockout mice were transplanted with bone marrow from transgenic mice expressing the pure prolactin receptor antagonist Del1-9-G129R-hPRL or their non-transgenic littermates as control.

Maternal prepregancy BMI and lipid profile during early pregnancy are independently associated with offspring's body composition at age 5-6 years: the ABCD study.

Background: There is growing evidence that disturbances in maternal metabolism and, subsequently, intrauterine conditions affect foetal metabolism. Whether this has metabolic consequences in offspring later in life is not fully elucidated. We investigated whether maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index (pBMI) is associated with offspring's adiposity at age 5-6 years and whether this association is mediated by the mother's lipid profile during early pregnancy.

Akt2/LDLr double knockout mice display impaired glucose tolerance and develop more complex atherosclerotic plaques than LDLr knockout mice.

Aim: To characterize the phenotype of Akt2/low-density-lipoprotein receptor double knockout (dKO) (Akt2/LDLr dKO) mice with respect to insulin resistance and features of atherosclerotic plaque progression.

Methods And Results: Metabolic profile and atherosclerotic plaque progression were compared between LDLr KO mice and Akt2/LDLr dKO mice. Total cholesterol, glucose, and insulin levels were significantly higher and oral glucose tolerance test (GTT) was more impaired in Akt2/LDLr dKO mice than in LDLr KO mice.

Maternal lipid profile during early pregnancy and pregnancy complications and outcomes: the ABCD study.

Context: Elevated lipid levels during late pregnancy are associated with complications and adverse outcome for both mother and newborn. However, it is inconclusive whether a disturbed lipid profile during early pregnancy has similar negative associations.

Objective: Our objective was to investigate whether nonfasting maternal total cholesterol and triglyceride levels during early pregnancy are associated with six major adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Is prolactin involved in the evolution of atherothrombotic disease?

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) account for approximately 30% of all deaths globally. The most important cause of CVD is atherothrombosis, in other words, narrowing of the arteries as a result of the deposition of cholesterol and other lipoid substances within the arterial wall. Several endocrine disorders have been linked to this pathological state.

Infusion of a lipid emulsion in healthy men decreases the serotonergic response.

Subjects with obesity and insulin resistance display a low response to a serotonergic challenge test. One of the hallmarks of obesity and insulin resistance is elevated plasma free fatty acids (FFAs). We hypothesize that increasing plasma FFA by infusion of a lipid emulsion, may be a contributing component leading to decreased serotonergic responsivity in healthy young men.

Functional consequences of prolactin signalling in endothelial cells: a potential link with angiogenesis in pathophysiology?

Prolactin is best known as the polypeptide anterior pituitary hormone, which regulates the development of the mammary gland. However, it became clear over the last decade that prolactin contributes to a broad range of pathologies, including breast cancer. Prolactin is also involved in angiogenesis via the release of pro-angiogenic factors by leukocytes and epithelial cells.

Microcirculation and atherothrombotic parameters in prolactinoma patients: a pilot study.

Atherothrombosis is a multifactorial process, governed by an interaction between the vessel wall, hemodynamic factors and systemic atherothrombotic risk factors. Recent in vitro, human ex vivo and animal studies have implicated the hormone prolactin as an atherothrombotic mediator. To address this issue, we evaluated the anatomy and function of various microvascular beds as well as plasma atherothrombosis markers in patients with elevated prolactin levels.

Maternal triglyceride levels during early pregnancy are associated with birth weight and postnatal growth.

Objective: To investigate whether randomly sampled maternal total cholesterol (TC) and triglycerides (TG) levels during early pregnancy are associated with birth weight (BW) and postnatal growth.

Study Design: Data were derived from the prospective Amsterdam Born Children and their Development cohort study. Randomly sampled TC and TG levels were determined in early gestation (median, 13; IQR, 12-14 weeks).

Prolactin and venous thrombosis: indications for a novel risk factor?

Objective: Several acquired risk factors for venous thrombosis (VT) are associated with high prolactin levels. Our goal was to investigate VT risk for different levels of prolactin.

Methods And Results: We used data of a case-control study on leg vein thrombosis conducted between September 1999 and August 2006 at the Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

The prolactin receptor is expressed in macrophages within human carotid atherosclerotic plaques: a role for prolactin in atherogenesis?

Atherosclerotic vascular disease is the consequence of a chronic inflammatory process, and prolactin has been shown to be a component of the inflammatory response. Additionally, recent studies indicate that prolactin contributes to an atherogenic phenotype. We hypothesized that this may be the result of a direct effect of prolactin on atherogenesis through activation of the prolactin receptor.

Prolactin levels and the risk of future coronary artery disease in apparently healthy men and women.

Background: Prolactin is increasingly recognized to play a stimulatory role in the inflammatory response. Because inflammation is considered of crucial importance in the development of atherosclerosis, we aimed to evaluate whether prolactin levels are associated with the occurrence of coronary artery disease (CAD).

Methods And Results: We performed a nested case-control study in the prospective EPIC-Norfolk cohort.

Should anterior pituitary function be tested during follow-up of all patients presenting at the emergency department because of traumatic brain injury?

Context: A wide range (15-56%) of prevalences of anterior pituitary insufficiency are reported in patients after traumatic brain injury (TBI). However, different study populations, study designs, and diagnostic procedures were used. No data are available on emergency-department-based cohorts of TBI patients.