Endocrine and reproductive Flashcards
(47 cards)
What are the complications of undescended testes?
- Infertility
- Torsion
- Testicular cancer
- Psychological
What is the management of undescended testes?
Unilateral undescended testis
Referral should be considered from around 3 months of age, Urological surgeon before 6 months of age
Orchidopexy: Surgical practices vary although the majority of procedures are performed at around 1 year of age
Bilateral undescended testes
Should be reviewed by a senior paediatrician within 24hours
What are the different types of growth?
Infancy (birth to 2-years-old)
Childhood (3 to 11-years-old)
Puberty (12 to 18-years-old)
What factors is growth driven by?
Environmental: this is the most important factor affecting fetal growth e.g. maternal nutrition and uterine capacity
Placental
Hormonal
Genetic: predominately maternal
What monitoring of growth should be done and when?
Infants aged 0-1 years
5 recordings of weight
Children aged 1-2 years
3 recordings of weight
Children older than 2 years
Annual recording of weight
Children below 2nd centile
Reviewed by their GP
Children below 0.4th centile
Should be reviewed by a paediatrician
What are the symptoms of hypothyroidism in children?
- Yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes (jaundice).
- A large, protruding tongue.
- Difficulty breathing.
- Hoarse crying.
- An umbilical hernia.

What is the cause of hypothyroidism?
-
Autoimmune disease
- Hashimoto’s thyroiditis
-
Worldwide
- Iodine deficiency
What is the diagnosis of hypothyroidism?
Blood tests
Low thyroxine and high TSH
What is the treatment of hypothyroidism?
- Levothyroxine
- Interacts with
- Iron, calcium carbonate
- Absorption of levothyroxine reduced, give at least 4 hours apart
What is Klinefelter’s syndrome?
Klinefelter’s syndrome is associated with karyotype 47, XXY
What are the features of Klinefelter’s syndrome?
- Often taller than average
- Lack of secondary sexual characteristics
- Small, firm testes
- Infertile
- Gynaecomastia - increased incidence of breast cancer
- Elevated gonadotrophin levels
How do you diagnose Klienfelter’s syndrome?
Chromosomal analysis
What is Kallman’s syndrome (hypogonadotropic hypogonadism)?
Kallman’s syndrome is a recognised cause of delayed puberty secondary to hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism
+ impaired snese of smell
What is the cause of Kallman’s syndrome?
It is usually inherited as an X-linked recessive trait.
Kallman’s syndrome is thought to be caused by failure of GnRH-secreting neurons to migrate to the hypothalamus.
What are the features of Kallman’s syndrome?
- ‘Delayed puberty’
- Hypogonadism, cryptorchidism
- Anosmia
- Sex hormone levels are low + LH, FSH levels are inappropriately low/normal
- Patients are typically of normal or above average height
- Cleft lip/palate and visual/hearing defects are also seen in some patients
How do you diagnose Kallman’s syndrome?
- Lack of sexual maturation
- Altered sense of smell
- Genetic testing
- LOW TESTOSTERONE
- LOW LH/FSH
What is the treatment of Kallman’s syndrome?
- Hormone replacement therapy (testosterone or oestrogen)
- Bone mineral density
What is androgen insensitivity syndrome?
X-linked recessive condition
Due to end-organ resistance to testosterone
Causing genotypically male children (46XY) to have a female phenotype.
What are the features of androgen insensitivity syndrome?
‘Primary amenorrhoea’
External genitalia is feminine but vagina is blind ending, no ovaries or uterus
Undescended testes causing groin swellings
Breast development may occur as a result of conversion of testosterone to oestradiol
What is the diagnosis of androgen insensitivity syndrome?
Buccal smear or chromosomal analysis to reveal 46XY genotype
What is the management of androgen insensitivity syndrome?
- Counselling - raise child as female
- Bilateral orchidectomy (increased risk of testicular cancer due to undescended testes)
- Oestrogen therapy
What is the first sign of pubery in males and when does the height spurt happen?
- First sign is testicular growth at around 12 years of age (range = 10-15 years)
- Testicular volume > 4 ml indicates onset of puberty
- Maximum height spurt at 14
What is the first sign of puberty in females and when does menarche occur?
irst sign is breast development at around 11.5 years of age (range = 9-13 years)
height spurt reaches its maximum early in puberty (at 12) , before menarche
menarche at 13 (11-15)
there is an increase of only about 4% of height following menarche
What are some normal changes in puberty?
Gynaecomastia may develop in boys
Asymmetrical breast growth may occur in girls
Diffuse enlargement of the thyroid gland may be seen