A patient with beta hCG-secreting germ cell carcinoma of the pineal and suprasellar regions presented with hydrocephalus, Parinaud's syndrome, hypopituitarism and polyuria. Central diabetes insipidus was strongly suspected although the water deprivation test was not diagnostic. The polyuria however, responded to ADH analogue when the hypothyroidism and hypocortisolism were treated. Pubertal development was evident and serum testosterone was normal despite the low FSH/LH, suggesting hCG stimulation of Leydig cells. This case illustrates that a beta hCG-germ cell tumour of the suprasellar region causing hypopituitarism can mask the presence of central diabetes insipidus and hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism.
This study assessed the sensitivities of preoperative localisation modalities such as computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), arteriography and arterial stimulation venous sampling (ASVS) using serum insulin and C-peptide gradients to intraoperative techniques in localising insulin-secreting tumours in our institution.
We report a case of a 45 year-old man who presented initially with a non-functioning pituitary macroadenoma. A routine chest radiography done preoperatively revealed a right lung nodule which was confirmed by computed tomography (CT) of the thorax. Transfrontal hypophysectomy was performed while a conservative approach was taken for the lung nodule. Four years later, he presented acutely with adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) dependent Cushing's syndrome which resolved following a right lobectomy. Histological examination revealed an atypical carcinoid. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of an ectopic ACTH secreting pulmonary carcinoid found in association with a non-functioning pituitary macroadenoma.
BACKGROUND: The role of endothelial injury and circulating adhesion molecule in the development and progression of diabetic peripheral neuropathy in the long-term has been established previously.
AIMS: To study the effects of short-term glycemic control using insulin and oral hypoglycemic agent therapy (OHA) on the peroneal nerve function and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) and advanced glycation endproducts (AGE) levels in type 2 diabetic patients.
SETTINGS AND DESIGN: A randomized controlled study involving poorly controlled (HbA1c, 7.5%-11%) type 2 diabetic patients attending the endocrinology outpatient center in a tertiary hospital in Kuala Lumpur.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty-nine patients were randomized to receive insulin (n=15) or OHA (n=14) for 8 weeks. The glycemic variables (HbA1c, fasting plasma glucose [FPG], fructosamine), VCAM-1, serum AGE and the peroneal motor conduction velocity (PMCV) were measured at baseline and at 4-week intervals.
STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: Paired 't' test or Kruskal Wallis test; and the unpaired 't' test or Mann-Whitney U test were used for within-group and between-group analyses, respectively. Correlation was analyzed using Spearman's correlation coefficient.
RESULTS: Within-group analysis showed significant progressive improvement in HbA1c at weeks 4 and 8 in the insulin group. The PMCV improved significantly in both groups by week 8, and by week 4 (P = 0.01) in the insulin group. PMCV correlated negatively with VCAM-1 (P = 0.031) and AGE (P = 0.009) at week 8.
CONCLUSION: Aggressive glycemic control with insulin improves the peroneal nerve function within 4 weeks. Improvement in the serum VCAM-1 and AGE levels correlated significantly with improvement in peroneal nerve conduction velocity only in the insulin group.
Study site: Tertiary endocrinology outpatient center in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
We studied the efficacy of four different treatment regimens (sulphonylurea and metformin+/-acarbose versus glimepiride and rosiglitazone versus glimepiride and bedtime NPH insulin versus multiple actrapid and NPH insulin injections) in poorly controlled type 2 diabetes subjects on hs-CRP, VCAM-1 and AGE at 4, 8 and 12 weeks of treatment. Multiple insulin injections rapidly improved HbA(1c) by 0.6+/-0.9% (p<0.005), 1.2+/-1.3% (p<0.0005) and 1.3+/-1.4% (p<0.0005) at week 4, at week 8 and week 12, respectively. Subjects who continued their existing combination treatment of sulphonylurea, metformin+/-acarbose also showed a significant reduction in HbA(1c) (p<0.05). Although effective in reducing glycemic parameters, there was no reduction in CRP levels in either treatment group. The treatment regimen consisting of rosiglitazone and glimepiride significantly lowered hs-CRP by -2.6 (3.9) mg/L (p<0.05) at week 12 in spite of no improvement in blood glucose. AGE improved in all groups irrespective of type of treatment, glycaemic control and CRP levels. Our data indicate rapid glycaemic control alone does not necessarily result in improvement in markers of inflammation in type 2 diabetes patients.
AIMS: Cardiovascular disease is the foremost cause of mortality in Malaysia but little is known about the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome and its associations with other known cardiovascular risk markers. We undertook a population-based study to examine these.
METHODS: For the study, 4341 subjects were selected using a multistage stratified sampling method. Subjects were interviewed for personal and past medical history. Biomedical markers and anthropometric indices were measured. The metabolic syndrome was defined using the harmonized criteria. The associations between the metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular risk markers, including high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, microalbuminuria and HbA(1c) were examined.
RESULTS: The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome was 42.5%. Subjects with the metabolic syndrome are significantly more likely to have higher BMI (> 25 kg/m(2)), HbA(1c) [≥ 42 mmol/mol (6.0%)], LDL (≥ 2.6 mmol/l), elevated albumin:creatinine ratio (> 2.5 μg/mmol creatinine for men, 3.5 μg/mmol creatinine for women) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (> 3 mg/l); odds ratio 5.48, 6.14, 1.44, 3.68 and 1.84, respectively, P < 0.001. The presence of an elevated albumin:creatinine ratio and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein are strong predictors for the presence of a higher number of positive criteria of the metabolic syndrome. HbA(1c) > 48 mmol/mol (6.5%) is associated with increased relative risk of elevated albumin:creatinine ratio, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and LDL (relative risk 3.10, 2.46 and 1.65 respectively, P < 0.001).
CONCLUSIONS: We confirmed the high prevalence of the metabolic syndrome in Malaysia. Our study revealed a strong relationship between risk markers of elevated BMI, HbA(1c), LDL, albumin:creatinine ratio and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein with the presence of the metabolic syndrome, putting them at a statistically high risk for cardiovascular mortality.
OBJECTIVE:
To determine the prevalence of prediabetes and diabetes among rural and urban Malaysians.
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS:
This cross-sectional survey was conducted among 3,879 Malaysian adults (1,335 men and 2,544 women). All subjects underwent the 75-g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT).
RESULTS:
The overall prevalence of prediabetes was 22.1% (30.2% in men and 69.8% in women). Isolated impaired fasting glucose (IFG) and impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) were found in 3.4 and 16.1% of the study population, respectively, whereas 2.6% of the subjects had both IFG and IGT. Based on an OGTT, the prevalence of newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes was 12.6% (31.0% in men and 69.0% in women). The prediabetic subjects also had an increased prevalence of cardiovascular disease risk factors.
CONCLUSIONS:
The large proportion of undiagnosed cases of prediabetes and diabetes reflects the lack of public awareness of the disease.
AIM: The prevalence of diabetes mellitus among Malaysians aged ≥ 30 years of age has increased by more than twofold over a 20-year period. This study aimed to determine the current status and to evaluate the diagnostic usefulness of the HbA(1c) cut-off point of 48 mmol/mol (6.5%).
METHODS: Using a two-stage stratified sampling design, participants aged ≥ 18 years were recruited from five zones selected to represent Malaysia. An oral glucose tolerance test was performed on all those not known to have diabetes.
RESULTS: A total of 4341 subjects were recruited. By World Health Organization criteria, the prevalence of diabetes mellitus was 22.9%; of that percentage, 10.8% was known diabetes and 12.1% was newly diagnosed diabetes. Diabetes was most prevalent amongst Indians (37.9%) and Malays (23.8%). Prevalence of new diabetes mellitus was only 5.5% (95% CI 4.9-6.3) when based on the HbA(1c) diagnostic criteria of 48 mmol/mol (6.5%) and, although the cut-off point was highly specific (98.1%), it was less sensitive (36.7%) compared with 45 mmol/mol (6.3%), which showed the optimal sum of sensitivity (42.5%) and specificity (97.4%) in identifying new diabetes mellitus.
CONCLUSION: This study recorded an overall diabetes prevalence of 22.6%, almost a twofold increase from 11.6% reported in 2006. This was likely attributable to the higher prevalence of new diabetes (12.1%) diagnosed following an oral glucose tolerance test. An HbA(1c) of 45 mmol/mol (6.3%) was found to be a better predictive cut-off point for detecting new diabetes in our multi-ethnic population.
Aim: To report the national prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) and its risk factors among adult Malaysians (>18 years old) based on World Health Organization (WHO), the National Cholesterol Education Program Expert Panel III (ATP III), International Diabetes Federation (IDF) and the 'Harmonized' criteria.Methods: A multi-stage stratified sampling method was used to select 4341 subjects from Peninsular and East Malaysia. Subjects underwent physical and clinical examinations.Results: Based on the WHO, ATP III, IDF and Harmonized definitions, the overall crude prevalences of MetS were 32.1, 34.3, 37.1 and 42.5%, respectively. Regardless of the criteria used, MetS was higher in urban areas, in females, in the Indian population and increased significantly with age. Risk factors also increased with age; abdominal obesity was most prevalent (57.4%), was higher in females (64.2%) and was highest in Indians (68.8%).Hypertension was higher in males (56.5%) and highest among Malays (52.2%). In contrast,the Chinese had the highest prevalence of hypertriglyceridemia (47.4%).Conclusions: Malaysia has a much higher prevalence of MetS compared with other Asian countries and, unless there is immediate intervention to reduce risk factors, this may pose serious implications on the country's healthcare costs and services.
A total of 4428 adults (>18 years old) from 5 different selected regions in Peninsular and East Malaysia participated in this health survey. Using World Health Organization recommendations for body mass index (BMI), the prevalence of overweight and obesity were found to be 33.6% (95% CI= 32.2, 35.0) and 19.5% (95% CI= 18.3, 20.7) respectively. There were more females who were obese (22.5%, 95% CI=20.9, 24.0) compared to males (14.1%, 95% CI=12.3, 15.9). Highest prevalence of obesity were among the Indians (24.6%, 95% CI=20.3, 29.3), followed closely by the Malays (23.2%, 95% CI=21.6, 24.8%) and lowest prevalence was among the Chinese subjects (8.2%, 95% CI=6.2, 10.6). More than 43% of the 531 younger subjects (<30 years old) were either overweight (20%, 95% CI=16.6, 23.6) or obese (13.9%, 95% CI=11.1, 17.2%). All subjects who claimed to be non-diabetes were required to undergo 75 g glucose tolerance test. Compared to subjects with normal BMI (18.5-24.9 kg/m2), there was a 3- and 2-folds increase in the prevalence of newly diagnosed diabetes and impaired glucose tolerance respectively, among obese subjects (BMI>30 kg/m2) who initially claimed to have no diabetes. This study highlights a need for more active, inter-sectoral participation advocating a health-promoting environment in order to combat obesity in this country.