Coexistence of Graves' disease and unilateral functioning Struma ovarii: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Coexisting of Graves' disease and functioning struma ovarii is a rare condition. Although the histology of struma ovarii predominantly composed of thyrocytes, the majority of the patients did not have thyrotoxicosis. The mechanism underlying the functioning status of the tumor is still unclear but the presence of thyroid stimulating hormone receptor (TSHR) is thought to play a role. Here we describe the patient presentation and report the TSHR expression of the tumor. CASE PRESENTATION: A 56-year old Asian woman presented with long standing thyrotoxicosis for 23 years. She was diagnosed with Graves' disease and thyroid nodules. She had bilateral exophthalmos and had high titer of plasma TSHR antibody. Total thyroidectomy was performed and the histologic findings confirmed the clinical diagnosis. The patient had persistent thyrotoxicosis postoperatively. Thyroid uptake demonstrated the adequacy of the thyroid surgery and the whole body scan confirmed the presence of functioning thyroid tissue at pelvic area. The surgery was scheduled and the patient had hypothyroidism after the surgery. The pathological diagnosis was struma ovarii at right ovary. We performed TSHR staining in both the patient's struma ovarii and in 3 cases of non-functioning struma ovarii. The staining results were all positive and the intensity of the TSHR staining of functioning struma ovarii was the same as that in other cases of non-functioning tumors, suggesting that the determinant of functioning struma ovarii might be the presence of TSHR stimuli rather than the intensity of the TSHR in the ovarian tissue. CONCLUSION: In patients with Graves' disease with persistent or recurrent thyrotoxicosis after adequate ablative treatment, the possibility of ectopic thyroid hormone production should be considered. TSHR expression is found in patients with functioning and non-functioning struma ovarii and cannot solely be used to determine the functioning status of the tumor.

A prospective, longitudinal, multicenter, observational study to assess insulin treatment patterns in diabetic patients in Thailand: results from the TITAN Study.

OBJECTIVE: To assess usage patterns, effectiveness, andsafety of newly prescribed insulin treatment in patients with diabetes in Thailand MATERIAL AND METHOD: Type 1 or type 2 diabetes mellitus patients who failed achievement of HbA1c <7%, and were about to start or switch to a new insulin treatment were enrolled into this prospective, longitudinal, multicenter observational study. Data regarding insulin usage pattern, HbA1c, fasting plasma glucose (FPG), and hypoglycemia were collected at enrollment, three and six-month. RESULTS: Between July 2008 and February 2010, 751 patients were recruited Mean (SD) age was 57.0 (12.8) years. Mean BMI was 26.1 (5.0) kg/m2. At enrollment, 269 (35.8%), 241 (32.1%), 206 (27.4%), and 35 (4.7%) patients were prescribed neutral protamine Hagedorn (NPH) insulin, long-acting insulin analogues (LAA), premixed insulin (Premixed), and insulin combinations, respectively. Significant HbA1c and FPG reductions were noted at six-month (-1.4% and -56.2 mg/dl, respectively, p<0.01). After stratifying patients into three subgroups according to insulin, the patients could continue throughout six months (588 patients, 211 NPH-group, 201 LAA-group, and 176 Premixed-group). Patients in LAA-group attained higher rate of achievement HbA1c <7% without any hypoglycemia (18.9%) than NPH-group (7.1%) and Premixed-group (6.3%; p<0. 001). Mild-to-moderate hypoglycemic events were reported at 638 events (1.9 events/patient-year) while severe hypoglycemia was reported at 10 events (3.0 event/l00 patient-year). CONCLUSION: In this observational study of real-life clinical practice in Thailand, most common newly prescribed insulin for patients having inadequate glycemic control was NPH, followed by LAA and premixed insulin. More patients on LAA achieved target HbA1c without hypoglycemic events than those on NPH and premixed insulin.

Glycemic control, quality of life and self-care behavior among adolescents with type 1 diabetes who attended a diabetes camp.

A prospective study was conducted at the tenth Siriraj diabetes camp with the objectives of evaluating the effectiveness of diabetes camp on 1) glycemic control, 2) knowledge, 3) quality of life, and 4) self-care behavior of adolescents with type 1 diabetes (T1D) who participated in the diabetes camp. During the 5-day camp, twenty-seven participants (mean age 15.6 +/- 2.1 years, mean duration 6.3 +/- 3.0 years) were taught diabetes self-management education (DSME) and engaged in psychosocial support sessions. Post-camp activities were held every 3 months and participants were followed for 12 months post-camp. Glycemic control was assessed prior to the camp, then every 3 months. Knowledge level was assessed prior to the camp, at the end of the camp, and every 3 months. Diabetes self-care behavior and quality of life were evaluated prior to the camp, at 3 months and 12 months after the camp. After attending the camp, participants had improvement in knowledge but there were no changes in HbA1c levels or quality of life scores. Quality of life was not consistently associated with HbA1c. In general, participants did not perceive their quality of life was poor or feel having diabetes affected their social life. The issue participants worried about most was whether they would develop complications from diabetes. There were several weak points found among participant self-care behavior, particularly in diet-related matters. Despite no improvement in glycemic control, participants gained knowledge from attending the camp. Diet related self-care behavior is difficult for teenagers with T1D to be compliant.

Apolipoprotein E gene polymorphism: effects on plasma lipids and risk of type 2 diabetes and coronary artery disease.

BACKGROUND: The most common apolipoprotein E (apoE) gene polymorphism has been found to influence plasma lipid concentration and its correlation with coronary artery disease (CAD) has been extensively investigated in the last decade. It is, however, unclear whether apoE gene polymorphism is also associated with increased risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The knowledge of this study may provide the primary prevention for T2DM and CAD development before its initiation and progression. Therefore, this study was carried out to determine the association between apoE gene polymorphism and T2DM with and without CAD and its role in lipid metabolism. METHODS: The case-control study was carried out on a total of 451 samples including 149 normal control subjects, 155 subjects with T2DM, and 147 subjects with T2DM complicated with CAD. The apoE gene polymorphism was tested by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). Univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to identify the possible risks of T2DM and CAD. RESULTS: A significantly increased frequency of E3/E4 genotype was observed only in T2DM with CAD group (p = 0.0004), whereas the ε4 allele was significantly higher in both T2DM (p = 0.047) and T2DM with CAD (p = 0.009) as compared with controls. E3/E4 genotype was also the independent risk in developing CAD after adjusting with established risk factors with adjusted odds ratio (OR) 2.52 (95%CI 1.28-4.97, p = 0.008). The independent predictor of individuals carrying ε4 allele still remained significantly associated with both CAD (adjusted OR 2.32, 95%CI 1.17-4.61, p = 0.016) and T2DM (adjusted OR 2.04, 95%CI 1.07-3.86, p = 0.029). After simultaneously examining the joint association of E3/E4 genotype combined with either obesity or smoking the risk increased to approximately 5-fold in T2DM (adjusted OR 4.93, 95%CI 1.74-13.98, p = 0.003) and 10-fold in CAD (adjusted OR 10.48, 95%CI 3.56-30.79, p < 0.0001). The association between apoE genotypes on plasma lipid levels was compared between E3/E3 as a reference and E4-bearing genotypes. E4-bearing genotypes showed lower HDL-C and higher VLDL-C and TG, whereas other values of plasma lipid concentrations showed no significant difference. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that ε4 allele has influence on lipid profiles and is associated with the development of both T2DM with and without CAD, and furthermore, it increased the risk among the subjects with obesity and/or smoking, the conditions associated with high oxidative stress.

Efficacy and safety of generic and original pioglitazone in type 2 diabetes mellitus: a multicenter, a double-blinded, randomized-controlled study.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the efficacy and safety of generic (Utmos) and original (Actos) 30 mg Pioglitazone tablets. STUDY DESIGN: A multicenter, parallel randomized, double-blinded, controlled study. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Type 2 diabetic patients, with glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA,) > or = 7.0%, who received Metformin not less than 1000 mg/day over three months were recruited. Patients were randomized to receive either generic or original Pioglitazone 30 mg/day for 24 weeks. RESULTS: Eighty-five patients were enrolled, forty-four patients received generic Pioglitazone andforty-one received original Pioglitazone. There were no significant differences in baseline characteristics between generic and original Pioglitazone group. There were significantly reduced HbA(1c), fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and significantly increased HDL-cholesterol from baseline (p < 0.0001) without statistically differences between the two groups. Headache and edema were found in both groups at comparable rates (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Generic Pioglitazone (Utmos) is effective in controlling blood glucose and has similar effects on lipid profile as the original one. Both generic (Utmos) and original (Actos) 30 mg Pioglitazone tablets were not different in the efficacy and safety profiles.

Lipid peroxidation and antioxidant enzyme activities in erythrocytes of type 2 diabetic patients.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Although diabetes mellitus (DM) patients are claimed to be under oxidative stress because of prolonged exposure to hyperglycemia, the influence of glycemic control and cardiovascular complication in diabetes on oxidative stress parameters has not been fully studied. The present study aimed to investigate lipid peroxidation end product (malondialdehyde, MDA) and antioxidant enzymes in fairly controlled type 2 DM (fasting plasma glucose [FPG] < or = 180 mg/dl) or type 2 DM complicated with coronary heart disease (CHD) and poorly controlled type 2 DM (FPG > 180 mg/dl) in comparison to a normal healthy group (FPG < 110 mg/dl). MATERIAL AND METHOD: MDA and antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and catalase (CAT) were determined in the red cell of 19 subjects with poorly controlled type 2 DM, 26 subjects with fairly controlled type 2 DM and 20 subjects with type 2 DM complicated with CHD who were matched for age and gender. Twenty healthy subjects with normal plasma glucose level and matched for age and gender were served as a control group. In all groups of DM these oxidative stress parameters were compared to a control group by one-way ANOVA test. Pearson rank correlation coefficient was used to compare the relationship between FPG and oxidative stress status in type 2 DM and normal controls. RESULTS: The red cell MDA levels were significantly higher in all types of diabetes compared to age-matched normal controls. The mean of red cell MDA level was highest in type 2 DM complicated with CHD. Red cell antioxidant enzyme activities were also significantly increased except for SOD and GPx activities in fairly controlled type 2 DM. The significant positive correlation between oxidative stress status (as MDA and CAT) and FPG was found in poorly controlled type 2 DM and type 2 DM complicated with CHD whereas in fairly controlled type 2 DM the significant positive correlation between CAT and FPG was only observed. CONCLUSION: These findings strongly confirmed the evidence that diabetic patients were susceptible to oxidative stress and higher blood glucose level had an association with free radical-mediated lipid peroxidation. The highest level of MDA in type 2 DM complicated with CHD suggested that oxidative stress played an important role in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular complication. The results also showed the increase in antioxidant enzymes. These could probably be due to adaptive response to pro-oxidant in diabetic state. Hence, there seems to be imbalance between oxidant and antioxidant systems in type 2 diabetic patients.

Glycemic control and the psychosocial benefits gained by patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus attending the diabetes camp.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of diabetes camp on glycemic control, knowledge, and psychosocial benefits among patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D). Glycemic control among patients with infrequent and frequent self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG) was also compared. METHODS: During a 5-day camp, 60 patients were taught diabetes self-management education (DSME). After camp, patients were divided into two groups based on frequency of SMBG (<3 versus 3-4 times/day) and were followed up until 6-month post-camp. Patients' HbA1c levels and knowledge were assessed at baseline, 3- and 6-month post-camp. Patients' impressions towards camp were assessed. RESULTS: In both SMBG groups, HbA1c levels decreased significantly at 3-month post-camp but did not sustain at 6-month monitoring. The patients with frequent SMBG had a lower mean HbA1c level. A significant improvement in knowledge was noted and sustained up to 6-month post-camp. The patients found diabetes camp of benefit and felt they could better cope with diabetes. CONCLUSIONS: Although the effect of the diabetes camp on glycemic control was short-lived, an improvement in knowledge and a better attitude towards having diabetes were seen among participants. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: The psychosocial benefits and knowledge gained by patients attending diabetes camp underline the importance of including a camp in a diabetes management plan. To improve patients' long-term glycemic control, a continuous education is required.

Glutathione and glutathione peroxidase in type 1 diabetic patients.

OBJECTIVE: Diabetic (DM) patients are claimed to be under oxidative stress because of hyperglycemia. The influence of free radical production by this hyperglycemic induction may involve cardiovascular complications in diabetes. The present study aimed to compare the glutathione (GSH) level and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity in type 1 DM and a normal healthy group. MATERIAL AND METHOD: GSH level and GPx activity were determined in red cells of 20 subjects of type 1 DM containing fasting plasma glucose (FPG) > or = 140 mg/dL. Twenty healthy normal subjects with normal plasma glucose level (FPG < or = 110 mg/dL) and matched for gender and age served as the control group. These oxidative stress parameters of type 1 DM were compared to a control group by unpaired student's t-test. The association of these parameters with FPG was performed by Pearson product moment correlation. RESULTS: The level of red cell GSH was significantly lower in type 1 DM (p = 0.011) but red cell GPx activity was significantly increased (p = 0.003) when compared to age-matched normal control. The decrement of red cell GSH may be due to the higher rate of consumption of GSH, increasing GPx activity or a reduction of pentose phosphate pathway, stimulated by insulin, resulting in lowered GSH recycle. The correlation between FPG and GSH in type I diabetic patients compared with healthy normal subjects was also observed and it was found that there was a negative correlation, but not found between FPG and GPx activity. CONCLUSION: The present finding suggested that type 1 DM patients were susceptible to oxidative stress and higher blood glucose level had an association with free-radical-mediated lipid peroxidation. Therefore, any means that can reduce oxidative stress may be beneficial for slow progression of cardiovascular complication in type 1 diabetic patients.

Hypercalcemia of malignancy: a study of clinical features and relationships among circulating levels of calcium, parathyroid hormone and parathyroid hormone-related peptide.

OBJECTIVE: Examine the clinical and biochemical features including serum intact PTH (iPTH) and plasma PTH-related peptide (PTHrP) levels in patients with malignancy-associated hypercalcemia (MAHC). MATERIAL AND METHOD: Forty-eight patients with histopathological or cytological proven malignancies and MAHC who were admitted to Siriraj Hospital were studied. RESULTS: The malignancies that caused MAHC were squamous cell carcinoma (45.8%), non-squamous cell solid tumors (31.3 %), and hematological malignancies (22.9%). Most patients (93.8%) had advanced stage malignancies. Corrected serum total calcium (cTCa) levels were 10.8-19.1 mg/dL (13.6 +/- 2.4) and severe hypercalcemia was observed in 17 cases (40.5%). Serum iPTH levels were 0.95-17.1 pg/mL (3.9 +/- 3.6). Most patients had suppressed serum iPTH levels of < 10 pg/mL. Plasma PTHrP levels were 0.2-44.0 pmol/L (3.8 +/- 6.8). There were 27 cases (56.3%) that had humoral hypercalcemia of malignancy (HHM) with plasma PTHrP levels of > 1.5 pmol/L, and 22 cases had squamous cell carcinoma. There was no difference in serum cTCa, phosphorus, alkaline phosphatase, and iPTH levels between patients with HHM and non-HHM. In 48 MAHC patients, serum cTCa correlated to plasma PTHrP (r = 0.35, p = 0.029) and to serum iPTH (r = 0.49, p = 0.003). In 25 patients with HHM, a stronger correlation between serum cTCa and serum iPTH (r = 0.55, p = 0.005) but not between serum cTCa and plasma PTHrP levels (r = 0.41, p = 0.05) was observed. Stepwise multiple regression analyses showed that serum iPTH but not plasma PTHrP levels independently correlated to serum cTCa levels (r = 0.39, p = 0.04). CONCLUSION: The clinical manifestations of MAHC observed in the present study were similar to those previously reported. Serum calcium correlated to serum iPTH more strongly than to plasma PTHrP levels. The low but detectable serum iPTH level might play a role in the development of severe MAHC particularly in HHM.

Antioxidant status and lipid peroxidation end products in patients of type 1 diabetes mellitus.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: In Type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM), hyperglycemia is considered a primary cause of diabetic vascular complications and is associated with oxidative stress. The role of antioxidants, particularly alpha tocopherol, in Type 1 DM and its contribution in the development of vascular complications is not clear. Therefore, the present study aims to investigate the relationship between antioxidant status (alpha tocopherol) and lipid peroxidation end products (malondialdehyde; MDA) in the plasma of 20 Type 1 DM and 20 nondiabetic healthy control subjects. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Lipid levels in all subjects were analyzed spectrophotometrically by enzymatic reagent kits. Plasma MDA was assessed by spectrofluorometry, whereas plasma alpha tocopherol was estimated by high performance liquid chromatography in Type 1 DM as well as in the control subjects of matched sex and ages. The results of Type 1 DM were compared with a control group using unpaired Student's t-test. The correlations between fasting plasma glucose and other laboratory parameters were assessed by Pearson rank correlation coefficient. RESULTS: The plasma MDA concentration was significantly higher in Type 1 diabetic patients as compared to controls, (p < 0.01). A significantly reduced plasma antioxidant status of Type 1 DM patients was found only in alpha tocopherol / total lipid as compared to controls (p < 0.05). However, no significant difference was observed in plasma a tocopherol and a tocopherol / total cholesterol (p > 0.05) as compared to the control subjects. The positive correlation between MDA and FPG was demonstrated in Type 1 diabetic compared with normal subjects. CONCLUSION: We conclude that antioxidant supplementation may be necessary for treatment to reduce oxidative stress for diabetic complication protection in Type 1 DM.

Plasma lipid peroxidation and antioxidiant nutrients in type 2 diabetic patients.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Observation shows diabetic patients to be more prone to oxidative stress because of hyperglycemia. The elevation of free radical production by this hyperglycemic production may exacerbate cardiovascular complication in diabetes. This study aims to investigate the oxidative stress related parameters in type 2 DM. Since the effects of glycemic control and cardiovascular complications in DM on these parameters has been not fully determined, the comparison between plasma MDA (malondialdehyde) and antioxidant nutrients with their age-matched normal healthy group may be used to determine the susceptibility of oxidative stress in this type of DM. MATERIAL AND METHOD: MDA and antioxidant nutrients (vitamin A, C, E and beta-carotene) were analyzed in plasma of 19 subjects with poorly controlled type 2 DM (fasting plasma glucose [FPG] > 180 mg/dl), 26 subjects with fairly controlled type 2 DM (FPG < or = 180 mg/dl), and 20 subjects with type 2 DM complicated coronary heart disease (CHD) who were matched for age and gender. Twenty healthy subjects with normal plasma glucose level (FPG < 110 mg/dl) and matched for age and gender served as a control group. In all groups of DM these oxidative stress parameters were compared to a normal group. RESULTS: The plasma MDA levels were significantly higher in all types of DM compared to age-matched normal control. Plasma antioxidant vitamin C and E significantly lower only in poorly controlled and CHD complicated type 2 DM, respectively. The mean of plasma vitamin E level was lowest in type 2 DM complicated with CHD. No significant differences in both plasma vitamin A and beta-carotene were noted between any types of DM and age-matched normal healthy group. The positive correlation between MDA and FPG was demonstrated in most group of patients with their normal subjects except in fairly controlled type 2 DM and negative correlation between vitamin E and FPG was also demonstrated in type 2 DM with CHD. CONCLUSION: These findings suggested that diabetic patients were susceptible to oxidative stress and higher plasma glucose level had an association with free radical-mediated lipid peroxidation. The lowest level of vitamin E in type 2 DM complicated with CHD indicated that oxidative stress played an important role in cardiovascular complication and vitamin E supplementation may be necessary for treatment and prevention in this group of diabetics.

Improved glycemic control among Thai children and young adults with type 1 diabetes participating in the diabetes camp.

Diabetes Education Program, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital has provided summer camps for Thai children with type 1 diabetes since 1990. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the diabetes camp in glycemic control. Twenty male and forty-two female patients participated in the 5-day diabetes camp held in Karnchanaburi, Thailand in 2003. The mean age was 14.1 +/- 4.3 years and the mean duration of disease was 4.5 +/- 3.5 years. Fifty out of sixty-two patients returned for a 3-month-postcamp visit. The glycemic control improved significantly. The mean precamp and postcamp HbA1c levels were 10.0 +/- 3.1% and 9.0 +/- 2.6% (p = 0.008) respectively. The diabetes camp is a valuable program for patients to learn diabetes-self management skills, especially in countries where the diabetes education programs are not always available.