How do hormones and receptors work together in the endocrine system. What role do biomedical engineers play in hormone-related treatments. How can students learn about endocrine communication through interactive activities.

Understanding the Endocrine System: Hormones and Receptors

The endocrine system is a complex network of glands and organs that produce and secrete hormones into the bloodstream. These chemical messengers play a crucial role in regulating various bodily functions, from growth and metabolism to mood and reproduction. At the heart of this system lies the intricate communication between hormones and their specific receptors.

What are hormones and how do they function?

Hormones are chemical substances produced by endocrine glands and released into the bloodstream. They act as messengers, traveling throughout the body to target specific cells or organs. Once a hormone reaches its destination, it binds to a receptor on the target cell, triggering a specific response or action within that cell.

The importance of hormone-receptor specificity

One of the most fascinating aspects of the endocrine system is the high degree of specificity in hormone-receptor interactions. Each hormone has a unique shape that fits only with its corresponding receptor, much like a key fits into a specific lock. This specificity ensures that hormones deliver their messages to the right cells, maintaining the precise control of bodily functions.

Biomedical Engineering and Hormone-Related Treatments

Biomedical engineers play a crucial role in developing treatments and technologies related to the endocrine system. Their work has led to significant advancements in hormone replacement therapies and diagnostic tools for endocrine disorders.

How do biomedical engineers contribute to hormone treatments?

• Developing synthetic hormones: Engineers work on creating artificial versions of hormones like insulin and growth hormone for patients with deficiencies.
• Designing drug delivery systems: They create innovative methods to administer hormones effectively, such as insulin pumps or long-acting hormone implants.
• Improving diagnostic tools: Biomedical engineers develop advanced imaging and testing technologies to accurately diagnose endocrine disorders.

The work of biomedical engineers in this field has dramatically improved the quality of life for many patients with endocrine disorders. For example, the development of synthetic insulin has revolutionized the treatment of diabetes, allowing patients to manage their condition more effectively and lead healthier lives.

Interactive Learning: The Endocrine Excitement Activity

To help students better understand the complex interactions within the endocrine system, educators can employ interactive activities that bring these concepts to life. One such activity is the “Endocrine Excitement” game, which simulates hormone-receptor interactions in a fun and engaging way.

How does the Endocrine Excitement activity work?

1. Students are divided into two groups: hormones and receptors.
2. Each “hormone” student is given a unique identifier that matches a specific “receptor” student.
3. The hormone group must find their matching receptors among the other students.
4. Once a hormone-receptor pair is matched, they perform a predetermined action together.

This activity helps students visualize the specificity of hormone-receptor interactions and understand how these pairings lead to specific bodily responses. It also reinforces the concept of communication within biological systems, which is a crucial aspect of both biology and engineering.

Engineering and Communication: Drawing Parallels

The Endocrine Excitement activity not only teaches students about biology but also introduces them to important engineering concepts, particularly in the realm of communication.

Why is communication important in engineering?

Effective communication is a cornerstone of successful engineering. Engineers must be able to clearly explain their ideas, designs, and findings to colleagues, clients, and the general public. This skill is crucial for:

• Collaborating on complex projects
• Securing funding for research and development
• Ensuring safety and compliance in engineering designs
• Educating the public about new technologies and their impacts

By participating in the Endocrine Excitement activity, students not only learn about biological communication but also practice communication skills that are essential in engineering and many other fields.

The Role of Engineers in Modern Communication Technologies

While the endocrine system represents a form of internal biological communication, engineers have developed numerous technologies that facilitate external communication on a global scale.

What communication technologies have engineers developed?

• Smartphones and mobile networks
• Satellite communication systems
• Fiber optic internet infrastructure
• Video conferencing platforms
• Social media networks

These technologies have revolutionized how we interact with one another and access information. Engineers continue to push the boundaries of communication technology, developing faster, more efficient, and more accessible systems that connect people across the globe.

Connecting Biology and Engineering: Interdisciplinary Learning

The Endocrine Excitement activity demonstrates the value of interdisciplinary learning, showing how concepts from biology can be relevant to engineering and vice versa.

How does interdisciplinary learning benefit students?

Interdisciplinary approaches to education offer several advantages:

• Encouraging critical thinking and problem-solving skills
• Fostering creativity by combining ideas from different fields
• Preparing students for real-world challenges that often require diverse knowledge
• Increasing engagement by showing the practical applications of theoretical concepts

By connecting biological concepts like hormone-receptor interactions to engineering principles of communication, students gain a more holistic understanding of how different scientific disciplines interact and complement each other.

Applying Endocrine System Concepts to Engineering Challenges

The study of the endocrine system can inspire innovative engineering solutions in various fields. By understanding how hormones and receptors communicate with precision within the body, engineers can develop more efficient and targeted technologies.

How can endocrine system concepts inspire engineering innovations?

• Drug delivery systems: Engineers can design medications that target specific receptors, minimizing side effects and improving efficacy.
• Biosensors: The specificity of hormone-receptor interactions can inspire the development of highly sensitive and specific sensors for medical diagnostics or environmental monitoring.
• Artificial intelligence: The complex signaling networks of the endocrine system can inform the design of more sophisticated AI algorithms for decision-making and pattern recognition.
• Nanotechnology: Understanding how hormones navigate the bloodstream to reach their targets can guide the development of nanoparticles for targeted drug delivery or imaging.

These examples illustrate how biological principles can drive technological advancements, highlighting the importance of cross-disciplinary knowledge in engineering innovation.

The Future of Endocrine Research and Biomedical Engineering

As our understanding of the endocrine system continues to grow, so too do the opportunities for biomedical engineers to develop groundbreaking treatments and technologies.

What are some emerging areas of endocrine research and engineering?

• Personalized medicine: Tailoring hormone therapies to individual genetic profiles for more effective treatment of endocrine disorders.
• Artificial endocrine organs: Developing bio-engineered replacements for damaged or dysfunctional endocrine glands.
• Gene therapy: Using genetic engineering techniques to correct endocrine disorders at the DNA level.
• Advanced hormone sensors: Creating wearable or implantable devices that can continuously monitor hormone levels and adjust treatments in real-time.
• Environmental endocrinology: Studying the impact of environmental factors on the endocrine system and developing engineering solutions to mitigate harmful effects.

These emerging fields represent exciting opportunities for future biomedical engineers to make significant contributions to healthcare and improve the lives of patients with endocrine disorders.

The importance of STEM education in preparing future endocrine researchers and engineers

To address the complex challenges in endocrine research and biomedical engineering, it’s crucial to inspire and educate the next generation of scientists and engineers. Activities like Endocrine Excitement play a vital role in this process by:

• Sparking interest in STEM subjects from an early age
• Demonstrating the real-world applications of scientific concepts
• Encouraging students to think creatively and solve problems
• Fostering collaboration and communication skills
• Highlighting the interconnectedness of different scientific disciplines

By providing engaging, hands-on learning experiences, educators can help cultivate the skills and passion necessary for students to pursue careers in endocrine research, biomedical engineering, and other related fields.

Conclusion: The Power of Interactive Learning in STEM Education

The Endocrine Excitement activity serves as an excellent example of how interactive, hands-on learning experiences can effectively teach complex scientific concepts while also introducing students to important engineering principles. By simulating hormone-receptor interactions through a fun and engaging game, students gain a deeper understanding of the endocrine system’s intricate communication network.

Moreover, this activity highlights the crucial role that communication plays in both biological systems and engineering disciplines. It demonstrates how concepts from different fields can inform and inspire one another, encouraging students to think creatively and draw connections across various areas of science and technology.

As we continue to face complex global challenges in healthcare, environmental protection, and technological advancement, the need for interdisciplinary thinkers who can bridge the gap between biology and engineering becomes increasingly important. Activities like Endocrine Excitement lay the foundation for this type of integrative thinking, preparing students to become the innovative problem-solvers of tomorrow.

By fostering a love for science and engineering through engaging, interactive lessons, educators can inspire the next generation of researchers, biomedical engineers, and innovators who will push the boundaries of our understanding of the human body and develop groundbreaking technologies to improve human health and well-being.

Endocrine Excitement! – Activity – TeachEngineering

Quick Look

Grade Level: 5
(3-5)

Time Required: 30 minutes

Expendable Cost/Group: US $0.00

Group Size: 2

Activity Dependency: None

Subject Areas:
Biology

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Summary

In this activity, students are divided into a group of hormones and a group of receptors. The hormones have to find their matching receptors, and the pair, once matched, perform a given action. This activity helps students learn about the specificity of hormone-receptor interactions within the endocrine system.
This engineering curriculum aligns to Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS).

Engineering Connection

One important aspect of engineering is communication. Engineers need to be able to explain their ideas and designs so that other people can understand their work. Biomedical engineers work to produce growth hormone and insulin for people who have challenges growing, or have diabetes. Engineers also design the technologies that make communication in space and on earth possible, including cell phones, digital video equipment and satellites.

Learning Objectives

After this activity, students should be able to:

• Explain that hormones help tell our body what to do
• Describe how hormones and receptors work together
• Relate how engineers are involved in communication

Educational Standards

Each TeachEngineering lesson or activity is correlated to one or more K-12 science,
technology, engineering or math (STEM) educational standards.

All 100,000+ K-12 STEM standards covered in TeachEngineering are collected, maintained and packaged by the Achievement Standards Network (ASN),
a project of D2L (www.achievementstandards.org).

In the ASN, standards are hierarchically structured: first by source; e.g., by state; within source by type; e.g., science or mathematics;
within type by subtype, then by grade, etc.

NGSS: Next Generation Science Standards – Science

International Technology and Engineering Educators Association – Technology

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Materials List

To share with the entire class:

• Labeled puzzle pieces – one per student

Introduction/Motivation

Communication is important for everyone! It’s a great skill for you, astronauts and engineers alike to have. Why do you think communication is important? Well, communication helps engineers, astronauts and anyone to get ideas across to each other. Astronauts need to be able to communicate with ground control on Earth while they are exploring space. If we could not communicate, then we could not let others know what we are thinking, or when we are sad or happy. Engineers would not be able to let you know what cool new technologies they have designed to help people out. In fact, engineers are the ones who design all the cool new technologies that help us communicate with friends far away, like cell phones, emails and text messaging. In our activity today, we are going to see one way that the body actually communicates with itself ─ through hormones.

Hormones help our body know what to do. They are part of our body’s communication system ─ called the endocrine system. The endocrine system helps messages travel throughout our body so that our body can do all the different things it needs to do. There are four main parts to this endocrine system, glands, hormones, bloodstream and receptors. Glands make and send hormones through the bloodstream to specific receptor sites. These hormone messages tell our body to do things like make more blood cells, digest food, absorb vitamins or even grow. There has to be one specific receptor site for each hormone message, otherwise your glands might tell your stomach to produce more blood cells or your bones to digest food. That would not work! When a hormone matches up with its specific receptor, then the body knows what it is supposed to do next. It is kind of like receiving a letter in the mail.

One of the most fascinating things about hormones is how incredibly specific they are! In fact, hormones act like real puzzle pieces, or like a lock and key. Sometimes, when you are putting together a puzzle, you can force a puzzle piece in next to another piece when it is not really meant to fit there. But, hormones and receptors are not quite like that: they have to match up perfectly, or they will not send a message. Today, we are going to do an activity that will help us learn more about how the hormones and receptor sites fit together like puzzle pieces. You are going to be either a hormone or a receptor. If you are a receptor, you will stand still and wait for your hormone to come and find you. If you are a hormone, you will search around the classroom until you find the receptor that is a perfect match for you. Are you ready? Let’s get started!

Procedure

Before the Activity

• Create puzzle pieces by cutting shapes out of cardboard and cut them in half, or use pieces from a jigsaw puzzle and label the back (plain) side of them.
• Each pair of puzzle pieces should be labeled: with an H on one half for hormone, and with an R for receptor on the other half (see Figure 1). Note: Write an action across both pieces, so that it can only be fully read when they are joined together. Possible actions include: jump up and down, jump on one foot, put your hand on your head, act like a monkey, turn in a circle, clap your hands, etc.

Figure 1. Example of a hand-made puzzle piece pair.copyright

Copyright © Image created by Abigail Watrous, University of Colorado at Boulder, 2006.

With the Students

1. Explain the procedure and discuss the specificity of the hormone-receptor interaction.
2. Pass out puzzle pieces, one per student, but tell the students not to look at the label on their piece.
3. Have students scatter throughout the entire classroom and then freeze.
4. Tell students to look at their pieces: students who are “receptors” must remain frozen in place; the “hormone” students may now move throughout the classroom. “Hormone” students must try to match their piece with each receptor piece until they successfully find a match.
5. Once all students have found their match, have each pair act out together the action written on their puzzle pieces.
6. You can repeat the activity if time permits.

Vocabulary/Definitions

Endocrine Gland: A gland in the body which secretes hormones into the bloodstream.

Hormone: A chemical secreted by endocrine glands which carries instructions to the body.

Receptor: A specific site on a cell designed to recognize and accept a specific hormone.

Assessment

Pre-Activity Assessment

Discussion Topic: Talk with students what it means to have a specific receptor site. Compare it to the child’s toy where you fit the shapes into the different holes. Can they think of examples of specificity in their own lives? (One clear example is a lock and key, but encourage them to come up with other ideas.)

Activity Embedded Assessment

Formation: As a way to actively engage all students and assess their knowledge, have them all participate in the activity of matching hormones to receptor sites. Closely observe students as they interact with each other in this activity and notice if they seem to be grasping the concepts of specificity and hormone-receptor interactions.

Post-Activity Assessment

Telephone Game: Play the game “telephone” with the students. Have all the students stand in a circle. Whisper, “Engineers need good communication to talk about new technologies” in the first student’s ear. Have that student turn to the person next to her/him and whisper the message to them. Continues whispering the message around the circle until it is relayed to the last person. The message can only be given once to each student. Have the last student say the message they heard aloud to the whole class. See how much the message has changed.

Discuss with the students how communication can be a problem when it goes through many receptor sites. This is why the endocrine system makes hormones that can only relay a message to one receptor site. When engineers design new technologies for communication, they need to understand how signals and messages can get changed if there are too many middle receptor sites as well. Ask the students if they can think of any times in their own lives when a message has been messed up because of bad communication.

Review Discussion: Review with the students what they learned. Discuss again how communication is so important for astronauts, engineers and for them. Discuss why it is such a good thing that the hormones in our bodies only match up with specific receptors. (This is good because it ensures that the hormones tell the “right” cells what to do.) Ask students students the following questions:

• Of which body system are hormones are part? (Answer: Hormones are part of the endocrine system.)
• What are some examples of body functions that are triggered by hormones? (Answer: Hunger, digestion, muscle growth, “fight or flight” reflex, among others.)

Safety Issues

Remind students to be careful not to bump into each other when moving around the classroom.

Troubleshooting Tips

If there are an uneven number of students in the class, the teacher may need to participate.

Activity Extensions

A related activity might be to have the students act out the “mail delivery” system of the endocrine system. One student could be the mail carrier, and several students could be the endocrine glands and write out “hormone” instructions for the “receptor” students to read. Once the mail carrier delivers the mail to the correct students, the “receptor” students could read the “mail” and then tell other “body” students what to act out.

Activity Scaling

For upper grades, you may design a more complicated system of interactions. For example, have one hormone-receptor pair interact with another pair, or create a chain-reaction of interactions.

For lower grades, you may use matching shapes, or matching colors instead of puzzle pieces.

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References

U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, “Study of Growth Hormone Treatment and Creutzfeldt-Jacob Disease Underscores Need for Prevention of Adrenal Crises,” http://www.nichd.nih.gov/new/releases/growth_hormone.cfm

Copyright

© 2006 by Regents of the University of Colorado.

Contributors

Melissa Straten; Abigail Watrous; Malinda Schaefer Zarske; Janet Yowell

Supporting Program

Integrated Teaching and Learning Program, College of Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder

Acknowledgements

The contents of this digital library curriculum were developed under a grant from the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), U. S. Department of Education and National Science Foundation GK-12 grant no. 0338326. However, these contents do not necessarily represent the policies of the Department of Education or National Science Foundation, and you should not assume endorsement by the federal government.

Last modified: December 4, 2020

Androgenic Endocrine Activity in the Female Mammal

• Published: 20 November 1937

• A. LIPSCHÜTZ¹ 

Nature
volume 140, page 892 (1937)Cite this article

Abstract

PARKES¹ recently made the very important statement that ovarian extracts may show androgenic activity when tested on the comb of the capon. Since there was no androgenic activity in purified ovarian hormones, Parkes reasonably concluded that the androgenic activity of the extracts was probably due to the presence of substances of the androsterone-testosterone group.

References

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Authors and Affiliations

1. Laboratory of Experimental Medicine, National Institute of Radium (Cancer), Santiago

   A. LIPSCHÜTZ

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• Der Einflu� gonadotroper Hormone auf ovarielle Fehlbildungen

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The course of endocrine ophthalmopathy | ENDORBIT

Endocrine ophthalmopathy is an autoimmune inflammatory disease of the periorbital tissues and soft tissues of the orbit, most often associated with pathology of the thyroid gland, with an unfavorable cosmetic outcome, significantly worsening the quality of life and, in some cases, posing a threat to vision.

What is important to know about the course of endocrine ophthalmopathy?

SMOKING is the most important risk factor for endocrine ophthalmopathy. Compared with non-smokers, smokers develop this disease more often, the effectiveness of treatment is lower, and the frequency of recurrence of endocrine ophthalmopathy during radioiodine therapy is also higher.

Most often, endocrine ophthalmopathy develops against the background of thyroid pathology. In about 75% of cases, this occurs against the background of Graves’ disease, in 10-15% of cases – against the background of autoimmune thyroiditis. There is euthyroid endocrine ophthalmopathy, in which inflammatory changes in the orbit occur in the absence of thyroid pathology. With euthyroid endocrine ophthalmopathy, it is necessary to carefully exclude all possible conditions and diseases that are similar in their course to endocrine ophthalmopathy.

In most cases, endocrine ophthalmopathy develops simultaneously with the development of Graves’ disease. The patient has such complaints characteristic of thyrotoxicosis as a sharp weight loss, palpitations, increased sweating, mood swings, hand tremors, along with complaints of discomfort in the eye area, a feeling of pressure behind the eye, protrusion of the eyeballs forward, swelling of the eyelids, expansion of the palpebral fissures , redness and tearing. Unfortunately, many patients do not pay attention to these complaints in time and turn to a specialist when the disease is already in full swing.

It is necessary to know that endocrine ophthalmopathy may appear several months and even years before the development of thyrotoxicosis, as well as several months or even years after the development of thyrotoxicosis.

During face-to-face consultations, we always inform our patients that, despite the common mechanisms of development of endocrine ophthalmopathy and Graves’ disease, these diseases can occur independently of each other.

Important things to know about thyroid hormone levels and endocrine ophthalmopathy:

• Normal and stable thyroid hormone levels should be achieved as soon as possible
• There is no fundamental difference in the method by which a normal and stable level of thyroid hormones is achieved. These may include thyreostatics, radioactive iodine, and surgical treatment of Graves’ disease followed by replacement therapy
• Severe thyrotoxicosis is associated with more severe forms of endocrine ophthalmopathy
• Late compensation of thyrotoxicosis is associated with a high risk of endocrine ophthalmopathy
• Late correction of hypothyroidism after radioiodine therapy or surgical treatment of Graves’ disease may cause endocrine ophthalmopathy or its recurrence

Speaking about the course of endocrine ophthalmopathy, it is necessary to tell about the stages of its development. The course of endocrine ophthalmopathy can be conditionally divided into the stage of debut, peak and outcome. The debut of the disease is the time of the appearance of the first symptoms of the disease and the patient’s complaints. In the peak stage, inflammatory changes and patient complaints are most pronounced. Such symptoms characteristic of active inflammation, such as redness and swelling of the eyelids, redness of the eye, pain when moving the eyes and behind the eye in the heat stage, disturb the patient the most. Even without treatment, inflammatory changes in endocrine ophthalmopathy will subside, and we will talk about the outcome of the disease. At this stage of the disease (outcome stage), cosmetic and functional changes cannot be corrected by conservative therapy, since fibrosis (scar tissue) has already formed in the oculomotor muscles, muscles that lift the upper eyelid and orbital tissue.

In endocrine ophthalmopathy, it is important to highlight such concepts as “activity” and “severity” of the disease.

The activity of the disease is the inflammatory phase from the moment of attack and the appearance of the first symptoms with their gradual or sharp increase until the process stabilizes.
Depending on the form of endocrine ophthalmopathy, the active phase of inflammation lasts from several days to several months. You can put an equal sign between the following definitions: Inflammation phase = Active stage; Fibrosis phase = Inactive stage

Symptoms of activity we include:

• Pain when moving the eyes in different directions
• Soreness behind the eye (in orbit)
• Eyelid redness
• Puffiness of eyelids
• Redness of the conjunctiva
• Conjunctival edema (chemosis)
• Edema of the lacrimal caruncle and semilunar fold

The severity of the disease is the degree of functional and cosmetic disorders at any stage or phase of the disease, regardless of the activity of the process.

Symptoms of severity of the process are:

• Dilatation of the palpebral fissure
• Enlargement (edema) of periorbital tissues
• Exophthalmos value (eye protrusion)
• Sideways eye movement restriction
• Damage to the cornea of ​​the eye
• Effect of the process on the optic nerve

The development of the severity of endocrine ophthalmopathy comes with some delay compared to the development of the activity of the process. Those. symptoms that we attribute to the severity of the process may increase even with a decrease in the activity of endocrine ophthalmopathy. For example, doubling often develops already in the later stages of the disease, when fibrotic changes have appeared in the oculomotor muscles.

One of the tasks of face-to-face consultation is to figure out which one: active or inactive stage of endocrine ophthalmopathy in a patient and determine the severity of the process.

On the Internet, when you search for information on endocrine ophthalmopathy in a search engine, a lot of frightening pictures of people with severe bulging eyes appear, and panic settles in the minds of patients that such a picture will definitely develop in them.

Endocrine ophthalmopathy is divided into mild, moderate and severe forms.

Most patients will experience mild endocrine ophthalmopathy

• 50-60% of cases of endocrine ophthalmopathy are mild
• The main complaints of patients are cosmetic changes, redness of the eyes, pain and discomfort in the eyes
• In many cases mild forms may be unilateral
• Patients present with dilation of the palpebral fissure due to the effect of the pathological process on the muscle that lifts the upper eyelid
• Unexpressed proptosis (exophthalmos) may be observed, which does not exceed an increase in the protrusion of the eye from the orbit by 2 mm from the initial value
• Most often, in mild forms of endocrine ophthalmopathy, the oculomotor muscles do not increase (according to CT / MRI of the orbit)
• This form of endocrine ophthalmopathy develops extremely quickly and, in most cases, does not require conservative treatment
• There is a slight decrease in the quality of life

Please note that mild forms of endocrine ophthalmopathy must be distinguished from ocular manifestations of thyrotoxicosis.

Eye symptoms of thyrotoxicosis include:

• Shine in the eyes
• palpebral fissure
• Slow blinking
• Photophobia
• Eye discomfort

With ophthalmic symptoms of thyrotoxicosis, there are no inflammatory changes in the eyelids and soft tissues of the orbit; at the same time, specific treatment, except for the compensation of thyrotoxicosis, is not required.

Next in frequency is moderate endocrine ophthalmopathy

• 35-45% of all cases of endocrine ophthalmopathy
• Patients complain of pressure behind the eye, lacrimation, redness of the eyes, pain and sand in the eyes, increased eye fatigue
• The oculomotor muscles are involved in the inflammatory process
• Many patients experience diplopia (double vision)
• Significantly reduced patient’s quality of life
• Symptoms develop in 2-4 weeks
• In the active stage of the disease, conservative treatment is required

The most severe forms of endocrine ophthalmopathy, fortunately for patients and doctors, develop quite rarely – in 3-5% of cases. Severe endocrine ophthalmopathy can lead to complete loss of vision due to the development of optic neuropathy or keratopathy

• 3-5% of all cases of endocrine ophthalmopathy
• The oculomotor muscles are involved in the inflammatory process
• Compression or tension on the optic nerve results in optic neuropathy
• Corneal lesion due to severe exophthalmos and non-closing of the eyelids
• Risk of significant visual impairment or loss if not treated promptly
• Conducting the fastest possible diagnosis to prescribe timely treatment
• If conservative therapy fails, urgent orbital decompression is required

Optic neuropathy – damage to the optic nerve associated with its mechanical compression or tension, as well as subsequent hemodynamic disturbances in the central artery and vein of the retina.

In the “Anatomy of the orbit” section of the site, you can see what an anatomical formation such as the orbit is and why the optic nerve suffers in severe forms of endocrine ophthalmopathy.

K eratopathy – damage to the cornea of ​​the eye, which develops as a result of non-closure of the eyelids, impaired innervation, decreased sensitivity, followed by infection and the risk of its perforation.

During a face-to-face consultation in the clinic, patients often ask questions whether all the symptoms of endocrine ophthalmopathy will go away if the thyroid gland is removed with radioactive iodine or surgically, when and under what conditions it is better to perform these methods of treatment. The position of modern medicine on these issues is quite unambiguous.

Surgical treatment of Graves’ disease

• Surgical treatment of the thyroid gland has no direct effect on the course of endocrine ophthalmopathy
• In some cases, surgical removal of the thyroid gland can stabilize the course of endocrine ophthalmopathy
• Performed with a large volume of the thyroid gland
• May be performed in the absence of stabilization of endocrine ophthalmopathy (in the active stage of the disease)

Radioiodine therapy

• Patients who are SMOKERS are at risk of progression of endocrine ophthalmopathy during radioiodine therapy
• To prevent the development of endocrine ophthalmopathy during radioactive iodine therapy, short courses of glucocorticoids can be used
• After radioiodine therapy, it is extremely important to detect and compensate for hypothyroidism in a timely manner
• Radioiodine therapy is contraindicated in the absence of stabilization of endocrine ophthalmopathy (in the active stage of the disease)

At the end of this section of the site, we once again focus your attention on the following important aspects of the course of endocrine ophthalmopathy

• Even without specific treatment, the activity of endocrine ophthalmopathy will decrease
• The course of endocrine ophthalmopathy in SMOKERS develops according to a more severe scenario
• Effective treatment of endocrine ophthalmopathy requires early detection and treatment in the active stage of the disease
• Normalization of thyroid function is an important condition for the stabilization of endocrine ophthalmopathy, regardless of the methods for achieving such results (thyrostatics, surgical treatment, radioiodine therapy)

Children’s Department of Endocrine Tumors

The uniqueness and success of the Children’s Department of Endocrine Tumors is based on a comprehensive approach that includes diagnosis, treatment, hormonal and social rehabilitation of patients with hormonal tumors.

Tumors of the endocrine system are rare in children. Most often, tumors are benign. However, the production of an increased amount of hormones by the tumor leads to serious consequences and requires timely treatment.

Children have tumors of almost all endocrine glands: pituitary gland, thyroid and parathyroid glands, adrenal glands, pancreas, testicles and ovaries. Often in children there are multiple tumors of the endocrine glands, which are hereditary in nature.

The Center has a unique opportunity for rapid comprehensive diagnostics of tumors due to the availability of modern laboratories (hormonal, immunological and genetic), high-tech imaging equipment (ultrasound, MRI, MSCT, angiography) and first-class specialists working on this equipment.

Physicians in the Department of Tumors and Diagnostic Units are world-class specialists participating in international symposiums and having publications in leading endocrinological journals.

The advantage of the Center is multidisciplinary clinic , where on one site it is possible to carry out a complete diagnosis, surgical treatment and subsequent hormonal rehabilitation in one hospitalization.

Thanks to the close proximity of the Center for Clinical and Scientific Units, the Tumor Department tests the latest treatment methods.

New in the treatment of hormonal tumors is the use of targeted chemotherapy . Those. the use of chemotherapy drugs that act exclusively on tumor cells, damaging them or stopping hormonal activity. With a number of endocrine tumors, this makes it possible to avoid mutilating operations or to prevent recurrence of the disease.

In the pediatric department of endocrine tumors, children who have had a tumor disease are constantly monitored. Long-term follow-up of patients with tumors of the endocrine glands allowed us to develop rehabilitation program for such children, which includes adequate substitution therapy, psychological rehabilitation and social adaptation. Modern methods of treatment and rehabilitation can significantly improve the quality of life of children, ensure full growth and development, and in some cases even preserve fertility in patients with tumors of the endocrine system.

The hereditary nature of the majority of neoplastic diseases in children makes molecular genetic diagnosis particularly relevant. In the genetic laboratory of the ENC, modern technologies have been developed and implemented to identify the cause of the tumor. Knowledge of the genetic cause not only dictates the tactics of treatment, both surgical and therapeutic, but also allows preclinical diagnosis in the patient’s relatives. By conducting a genetic analysis in a healthy relative and identifying a gene mutation, it is possible to predict the development of the disease and carry out preventive treatment.

Also, knowledge of the genetic cause makes it possible to carry out prenatal and pre-implantation diagnostics in families with hereditary tumor diseases.