Investigation of pituitary functions after acute coronavirus disease 2019

Although coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) mainly involves the lungs, it also affects many systems. The hypothalamic/pituitary axis is vulnerable to hypoxia, hypercoagulation, endothelial dysfunction and autoimmune changes induced by COVID-19 infection. Given that there is no extensive investigation on this issue, we investigated the pituitary functions three to seven months after acute COVID-19 infection. Forty-three patients after diagnosis of COVID-19 infection and 11 healthy volunteers were included in the study. In addition to the basal pituitary hormone levels, growth hormone (GH) and hypothalamo-pituitary adrenal (HPA) axes were evaluated by glucagon stimulation test (GST) and low-dose adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) stimulation test, respectively. The peak cortisol responses to low-dose ACTH test were insufficient in seven (16.2%) patients. Twenty (46.5%) and four (9.3%) patients had inadequate GH and cortisol responses to GST, respectively. Serum insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) values were also lower than age and sex-matched references in four (9.3%) patients. The peak GH responses to GST were lower in the patient group when compared to the control group. Other abnormalities were mild thyroid-stimulating hormone elevation in four (9.3%) patients, mild prolactin elevation in two (4.6%) patients and central hypogonadism in four (9.3%) patients. Mean total testosterone values were lower in male patients when compared to male controls; however, the difference was not significant. These findings suggest that COVID-19 infection may affect pituitary functions, particularly the HPA and GH axes. These insufficiencies should be kept in mind in post-COVID follow-up. Long-term data are needed to determine whether these deficiencies are permanent or not

Erişkinlerde laparoskopik koledok kist rezeksiyonu: Türkiye’den bir seri

Objective: Choledochal cyst is a congenital disease in which surgical treatment is preliminary because of the potential for malignancy. In recent years, increase in technological developments and laparoscopic experience have popularised the use of laparoscopy in adult choledochal cyst surgery. This study aimed to present the results of eight adult patients undergoing laparoscopic choledochal excision surgery. Material and Methods: Patients who underwent laparoscopic choledochal cyst excision and hepatico-jejunostomy anastomoses between the years 2013 and 2018 were evaluated retrospectively. Demographic characteristics, preoperative and postoperative findings, pathological results and final condition of the patients were examined. Results: Of the eight patients, three were males and five were females. Median age was 41.5 years (22-49). One of the patients had Type IVa and the rest had Type I choledochal cysts. Laparoscopic choledochal cyst excision, cholecystectomy, and hepatico-jejunostomy anastomoses were performed on all of the patients. One patient was converted to open surgery. Three patients had postoperative biliary leakage. Duration of the operations was determined as median 330 (240-480) minutes and blood loss was 50 (10-100) mL. Hospitalization of the patients was median 6 (4-23) days and follow-up time was median 20 (2-65) months. In the late period, cholangitis occured in a patient who was treated with medical therapy and there was no mortality in the follow-up period. Conclusion: We suggest that laparoscopic choledochal cyst excision in adults may be an alternative to open surgery due to the satisfactory results in the late period in spite of early problems like self-limiting bile leakage.Giriş ve Amaç: Koledok kistleri malignite potansiyeli nedeniyle cerrahi tedavinin ön planda olduğu konjenital bir hastalıktır. Son yıllarda teknolo-jik gelişmeler ve laparoskopik tecrübede artış erişkin koledok kist cerrahisinde laparoskopinin kullanımını yaygınlaştırmaktadır. Bu çalışmada amacımız laparoskopik koledok eksizyonu yapılan sekiz erişkin hastanın sonuçlarını sunmaktır. Gereç ve Yöntem: Kliniğimizde 2013-2018 yılları arasında laparoskopik koledok kist eksizyonu ve hepatiko-jejunostomi uygulanan hastalar retrospektif olarak değerlendirildi. Hastaların demografik özellikleri, peroperatif ve postoperatif bulguları, patolojik sonuçları ve son durumları irdelendi. Bulgular: Çalışmaya dahil edilen sekiz hastanın üçü erkek, beşi kadın idi. Yaşların median değeri 41.5 (22-49) idi. Hastaların bir tanesinde tip IVa, diğerlerinde ise tip 1 koledok kisti saptandı. Hastaların tamamına laparoskopik koledok eksizyonu, kolesistektomi ve heptiko-jejunostomi yapıldı. Bir hastada açık cerrahiye geçildi. Üç hastada postoperatif safra kaçağı oldu. Operasyon süreleri median 330 (240-480) dakika ve kan kaybı 50 (10- 100) mL olarak saptandı. Hastaların yatış süreleri median 6 (4-23) gün ve takip süreleri median 20 (2-65) ay olduğu tespit edildi. Geç dönemde; bir hastada medikal tedavi ile düzelen kolanjit atağı gözlendi, mortalite ise görülmedi. Sonuç: Kendini sınırlayan safra kaçakları dışında erken dönemde önemli sorun yaşamamamız ve geç dönemdeki tatminkar sonuçlar nedeniyle laparoskopik koledok kist eksizyonunun erişkinlerde açık cerrahiye bir alternatif olabileceğini söyleyebiliriz