Endocrine development
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Inflicted non-accidental skeletal injuries form a small but important part of the spectrum of child abuse, with the majority of skeletal injuries occurring in children under 2 years of age. Radiology plays a vital role in the detection and evaluation of these skeletal injuries. A thorough detailed radiological evaluation should be undertaken to investigate a child appropriately for a suspected inflicted non-accidental injury to accurately detect and possibly date any injuries and also to exclude normal variants of growth that may mimic fractures. ⋯ Therefore, it is important that all fractures identified are correlated with any relevant clinical history. Certain injuries, such as rib and metaphyseal fractures, require a more specific method of causation and therefore carry a higher degree of suspicion of being the result of an inflicted injury compared with other fracture types, which are relatively non-specific in their mechanisms of causation, such as skull and clavicular fractures. In all cases, correlation with clinical history is mandatory.
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Patients with defects in the steroid biosynthesis and resulting disorders of sex development are the largest group among patients with such disorders. Many of these patients suffer from adrenal insufficiency and have to take either glucocorticoids or a combination of glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid replacement therapy from birth to avoid life-threatening complications. In this chapter, the physiologic situation of cortisol secretion and the different possibilities of hormone replacement therapy are discussed. Further attention is given to stress-dosing of glucocorticoids, especially hydrocortisone.
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Chronic pelvic pain occurs commonly in the adolescent and can be a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge for the clinician, the adolescent, and her family. Defined as lower quadrant or lower abdominal pain lasting 3-6 months or longer, chronic pelvic pain can lead to missed school and activities, decreased functioning, and decreased quality of life in the adolescent. Both the primary care clinician and the pediatric gynecologist need to be aware of the most common causes of chronic pelvic pain in the adolescent, including surgical and nonsurgical, gynecologic versus other pathology including the psychosomatic, and the role of the mind in control of somatic pain in the adolescent. ⋯ Education and communication with both the adolescent and her family requires sensitivity, especially in cultures where adolescent sexuality is taboo or discouraged. This chapter will discuss the developmental stages of adolescence and how that impacts care of the patient with chronic pelvic pain at the varying ages, the issue of confidentiality when obtaining a sexual history on the adolescent, and etiologies of chronic pelvic pain specific to the adolescent, including gynecologic and nongynecologic causes. Diagnostic and treatment considerations for chronic pelvic pain in the adolescent will also be addressed.
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The rhythmic regulation of human physiology and behaviour is controlled by a central endogenous clock located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus. Most tissues have peripheral clocks that oscillate in time with this central clock. How the central time keeper controls peripheral clocks is not established, however there is evidence to suggest that the cortisol rhythm is one important secondary messenger. ⋯ We propose that reproducing circadian cortisol levels may improve quality of life in patients with adrenal insufficiency and we have been investigating the impact of circadian hydrocortisone replacement. Using Chronocort, a modified release preparation of hydrocortisone, we have demonstrated that it is possible to simulate the overnight rise in cortisol release and, in preliminary studies in patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia, control morning androgen levels. Future studies are now required to determine whether Chronocort can improve quality of life in patients with adrenal insufficiency.
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Endocrine development · Jan 2010
ReviewSexual hormones and the brain: an essential alliance for sexual identity and sexual orientation.
The fetal brain develops during the intrauterine period in the male direction through a direct action of testosterone on the developing nerve cells, or in the female direction through the absence of this hormone surge. In this way, our gender identity (the conviction of belonging to the male or female gender) and sexual orientation are programmed or organized into our brain structures when we are still in the womb. ⋯ This also means that in the event of ambiguous sex at birth, the degree of masculinization of the genitals may not reflect the degree of masculinization of the brain. There is no indication that social environment after birth has an effect on gender identity or sexual orientation.