Associations among sex hormone binding globulin concentrations and characteristics of the metabolic syndrome in obese women.

The aim of this study was to determine sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) concentrations in premenopausal obese women who were otherwise healthy, and to evaluate the relationships between SHBG concentrations and features of the metabolic syndrome; 307 premenopausal women (mean age 30.9+/-10.2 years) were studied.

Evaluation of endothelial function in subclinical hypothyroidism and subclinical hyperthyroidism.

Subclinical hypothyroidism and subclinical hyperthyroidism are two frequently occurring conditions for which exact therapeutic approaches have not yet been established. The aim of this study was to compare the endothelial function and carotid artery intimae-media thickness (IMT) of these two groups of patients to euthyroid subjects and to assess the effects of these conditions on endothelial function. Study groups comprised of 25 subclinical hypothyroid patients (mean age, 32.

Therapeutic plasmapheresis in patients with severe hyperthyroidism in whom antithyroid drugs are contraindicated.

Four patients with Graves' disease in whom antithyroid drugs could not be used were treated by plasmapheresis preoperatively. On admission all patients had severe hyperthyroidism. All patients were treated by beta blockers, cholestyramine and inorganic iodine before plasmapheresis.

Determination of endothelial function and early atherosclerotic changes in healthy obese women.

The aim of this study was to determine the associations between vascular endothelial function, intima-media thickness (IMT) of the common carotid artery and anthropometric/metabolic parameters in healthy obese women without obesity-related metabolic complications and age-matched healthy lean controls. Twenty-four obese [body mass index (BMI) > 30 kg/m2; age 31.4 +/- 7.

Clinical laboratory findings and results of therapy in 55 patients with Cushing's syndrome.

In this study, 55 patients with Cushing's syndrome (CS) (50 female, 5 male; mean age 34 +/- 12.3 yr) who attended our clinics between the years 1983 and 2000 were retrospectively evaluated for clinical and laboratory features and modalities and results of therapy, due to a few similar studies over the last ten years. Cushing's disease was diagnosed in 39 patients (71%), adrenal adenoma in 13 patients (23.

Body fat distribution and cardiovascular disease risk factors in pre- and postmenopausal obese women with similar BMI.

The aim of this study is to determine the body fat distribution and cardiovascular disease risk factors in pre- and postmenopausal obese women matched for weight, height and body mass index (BMI). Study group consisted of 405 premenopausal overweight/obese (BMI > 27 kg/m2, mean 37.83 +/- 6.

Left ventricular diastolic function abnormalities in hypopituitary patients with GH deficiency: evidence for a subclinical cardiomyopathy.

The aim of this study was to evaluate cardiac performance, in particular diastolic function, in adult patients with adulthood onset GH deficiency. The study group was composed of 19 GH deficient adult hypopituitary patients with at-least 3 additional pituitary hormone deficits and 19 age, sex and BMI matched healthy controls. Mean duration of hypopituitarism was 108.

Immunohistochemical detection of E-cadherin, alpha- and beta-catenins in papillary thyroid carcinoma.

E-cadherin and catenins play a major role in neoplastic cell behavior as a suppressor of invasion and/or metastasis. The aim of this study was to determine E-cadherin, alpha-catenin and beta-catenin expressions in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) and to correlate the results of expression to initial clinicopathological parameters and clinical outcome. Forty-one cases (mean age 37.

Cushing's syndrome caused by ectopic corticotropin secretion by multiple peripheral pulmonary carcinoids and tumorlets of carcinoid type.

Multiple peripheral pulmonary carcinoid tumors or their smaller counterparts (tumorlets of carcinoid type) are the most unusual form of carcinoids as a cause of ectopic corticotropin syndrome. Only three case reports were found in the literature. We describe a 35 year-old female patient with ectopic corticotropin secretion due to multiple peripheral pulmonary carcinoid tumors and tumorlets.

Serum lipid and leptin concentrations in hypopituitary patients with growth hormone deficiency.

Objective: To investigate the effects of growth hormone (GH) deficiency on serum lipid and leptin concentrations in hypopituitary patients taking conventional replacement therapy and to determine the relations between leptin and gender and anthropometric and metabolic variables.

Subjects: Twenty-one GH deficient adult hypopituitary patients (15 women, six men) and 21 (14 women, seven men) age, sex and body mass index (BMI) matched healthy controls.

Measurements: After an overnight fast, anthropometric parameters were measured and body composition was determined by a bioelectrical impedance analyser.

Clinical course of a pituitary macroadenoma in the first trimester of pregnancy: probable lymphocytic hypophysitis.

Recent findings revealed that the clinical features of lymphocytic hypophysitis are more complicated than previously thought. It is rarely described in the first trimester of pregnancy and signs of meningeal irritation are infrequently reported. In this study, a pregnant woman in her first trimester of pregnancy with clinical and radiological characteristics of a pituitary macroadenoma is described.

Fatty acid composition of 19 species of fish from the Black Sea and the Marmara Sea.

Evidence suggests that differences in fatty acid composition among various fish species may be due to differences in diet or to environmental factors such as temperature, salinity, and depth at which the fish are caught. The beneficial effects of a diet containing fish on cardiovascular or other diseases have been associated with their high content of eicosapentaenoic (20:5n-3) and docosahexaenoic (22:6n-3) acids. In this study we analyzed the fatty acid composition of the flesh of 18 different species of marine fish and of cultured rainbow trout.

Primary hypothyroidism with hyperprolactinaemia and pituitary enlargement mimicking a pituitary macroadenoma.

Hyperprolactinaemia can occur in patients with hypothyroidism. A 32-year-old woman with primary hypothyroidism presented with amenorrhoea and galactorrhoea of two years' duration. She had hyperprolactinaemia, low basal morning cortisol levels and evidence of a pituitary macroadenoma on magnetic resonance imaging.

Evaluation of signal-averaged electrocardiogram in healthy obese women: effects of subcutaneous adipose tissue.

Objective: To determine the correlations between signal-averaged electrocardiography (SAECG) indices and various anthropometric parameters in obese women.

Subjects: Twenty-seven healthy obese women (mean age 29.7 +/- 9.

Acromegalic cardiomyopathy: evaluation of the left ventricular diastolic function in the subclinical stage.

It is recently shown that the majority of acromegalic patients without concomitant heart disease have diastolic dysfunction at rest. The aim of this study is to evaluate left ventricular diastolic function in normotensive acromegalic patients without any evidence of heart disease. Eleven acromegalic patients and 16 normal subjects of comparable age and sex distribution were studied by echocardiography.

Relationship between adrenal cortex pathology in Cushing's syndrome and its response to the dexamethasone suppression test.

Cushing's syndrome is a severely disabling condition which can cause death if left untreated. Endogenous Cushing's syndrome can be ACTH-dependent or ACTH-independent. The ACTH-dependent type is more common and is usually caused by diffuse hyperplasia on the adrenal cortex.

Pituitary macroadenoma in Addison's disease.

Long-standing primary failure of pituitary-dependent endocrine glands may lead to hyperplasia of the pituitary cells. These changes in the pituitary gland may be correlated with the severity and duration of target-endocrine gland insufficiency. Production of adrenocorticotrophic hormone by the pituitary tumour and modest hyperprolactinaemia may develop due to adrenocortical insufficiency, but production of prolactin by the pituitary tumour due to primary adrenal insufficiency is rare.

Clinical and laboratory evaluation of 40 patients with Sheehan's syndrome.

Forty patients with typical obstetric history of Sheehan's syndrome were reviewed retrospectively. Together with baseline laboratory values, insulin hypoglycemia test was evaluated in 15 patients, thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) in 27 and luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH) in 7 patients. Baseline hormone values suggested secondary hypothyroidism, hypogonadotropic hypogonadism and hypocortisolemia.

Bromocriptine-induced cerebrospinal fluid fistula in patients with macroprolactinomas: report of three cases and a review of the literature.

Bromocriptine therapy for macroprolactinoma induced cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) rhinorrhea in three patients. The tumor had extended well beyond the sella turcica and caused bony erosion in all the cases. All three patients responded to bromocriptine therapy rapidly.

Human lymphocyte antigens (HLA) and Graves' disease in Turkey.

To evaluate the association of HLA types with Turkish patients with Graves' disease, HLA typing, clinical findings, and thyroid antibodies were correlated. The HLA types, clinical findings (ophthalmopathy and age at onset), and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) receptor (TRAb) and antithyroid microsomal antibodies (MAb) were analyzed. Seventy Turkish patients with Graves' disease and 306 control subjects were assessed.

Growth hormone secretion in protein energy malnutrition.

Plasma hGH levels were assessed in 15 infants with protein energy malnutrition following insulin induced hypoglycemia, arginine and L-Dopa provocation tests and intravenous glucose tolerance test. Fasting hGH levels were high in 85.7% of the cases.