Advances in the medical management of secondary hyperparathyroidism due to renal failure have decreased the use of parathyroidectomy as a treatment option. However, some patients with end-stage renal disease still progress to refractory hyperparathyroidism and debilitating bone disease, for which parathyroidectomy may be warranted. We describe a case of a 35-year-old female on chronic hemodialysis who presented with bone pains, deformities, decrease in height and recurrent pathologic fractures. She had markedly elevated parathyroid hormone (PTH), vitamin D deficiency, persistent hyperphosphatemia and hypocalcemia despite therapeutic measures. Subtotal parathyroidectomy was done with eventual improvement of biochemical abnormalities, resolution of bone pains and healing of fractures.

Human ; Female ; Adult ; Bone Diseases ; Fractures, Spontaneous ; Hyperparathyroidism, Secondary ; Hyperphosphatemia ; Hypocalcemia ; Kidney Failure, Chronic ; Parathyroid Hormone ; Parathyroidectomy ; Renal Dialysis ; Renal Insufficiency ; Vitamin D Deficiency

OBJECTIVES:To determine the diagnostic accuracy of combined ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration biopsy (USG-FNAB) and intraoperative frozen section examinationin (FSE) in diagnosing malignant thyroid nodules.
METHODOLOGY:Retrospective review of patients undergoing thyroidectomy with intraoperative frozen section examination following ultrasound guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values and accuracy were calculated with respect to final histology.
RESULTS: A total of 2,239 nodules were subjected to USG-FNAB at the Diabetes, Thyroid and Endocrine Center, St. Luke's Medical Center between January 2007 and December 2009. Two hundred fifty-one nodules were surgically excised following USG-FNAB. Frozen section examinations were taken from 90 of 251 nodules. The USG-FNAB yielded 90.3% (n=1,721) adequate specimens and 9.7% (n=185) inadequate specimens. The histologic examination of the 251 surgically excised nodules revealed 182 (73%) benign and 69 (27%) malignant nodules. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values and accuracy rate of USG-FNAB cytology are 70.3%, 92.8%, 76.5%, 90.4% and 87.2%, respectively. The diagnosis by frozen section was benign in 56 cases (62%), malignant in 10 cases (11%) and deferred in 24 cases (27%). By FSE, the sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values and accuracy rate are 83.3%, 100%, 100%, 96.4% and 96.7%, respectively. A diagnostic accuracy of up to 97.2% was achieved when USG-FNAB and FSE were combined and when their findings were concordant. When USG-FNAB and FSE diagnoses were discordant, the FSE showed superior accuracy (83.3%) than cytology (16.7%). In the group of nodules with indeterminate or inadequate cytology, the diagnostic accuracy of frozen section is 100%.
CONCLUSION:Ultrasound guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy is an accurate preoperative test for the evaluation of nodular thyroid disease. It helps to distinguish malignant from benign lesions. The intraoperative frozen section is a valuable test for confirming the cytologic diagnosis. It is especially important in identifying malignant thyroid nodule in cases with indeterminate cytology. The combination of USG-FNAB and FSE greatly improves the accuracy rate in thyroid cancer detection.

Human ; Male ; Female ; Aged 80 And Over ; Aged ; Middle Aged ; Adult ; Young Adult ; Adolescent ; Biopsy, Fine-needle ; Cytodiagnosis ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Frozen Sections ; Sensitivity And Specificity ; Thyroid Neoplasms ; Thyroid Nodule ; Thyroidectomy

Objective: To assess the diagnostic accuracy of ultrasound guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy (USGFNAB) in detecting malignancy of the thyroid nodule. Setting: Tertiary care academic medical center in the Philippines. Study Design: Retrospective review of patients undergoing surgery following ultrasound guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy for nodular thyroid disease. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values and accuracy were calculated with respect to final histology. Subjects: A total of 2,239 nodules from 1,737 consecutive patients were subjected to ultrasound guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy at Diabetes, Thyroid and Endocrine Center, St. Luke’s Medical Center. Two hundred fifty-one of the nodules were surgically excised following FNAB. Results: The USG-FNAB yielded 90.3% (n=1,721) adequate specimen and 9.7% (n=185) inadequate specimen. Cytology results were 1,448 (76%) benign, 63 (3.3%) malignant and 210 (11%) indeterminate for malignancy. Histologic examination of the 251 surgically excised nodules revealed 182 (73%) were benign and 69 (27%) were malignant. There were 11 false negative and 8 false positive FNAB cytology. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and accuracy rate of USG-FNAB are 70.3%, 92.8%, 76.5%, 90.4% and 87.2%. The USG-FNAB identified malignancy in 37.7% of the cases and its yield for carcinoma is 27.5% when applied preoperatively. Conclusion: Our experience confirms that ultrasound guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy of the thyroid nodules is a powerful diagnostic tool in identifying malignant thyroid disease. Although, the diagnostic accuracy is good, the test remains limited by indeterminate and inadequate samples.

Objectives: This study aimed to determine the incidence and risk factors for post-thyroidectomy hypocalcemia. Methodology: This was a retrospective study of 242 patients who underwent total or completion thyroidectomy from 2011-2014 at the St. Luke’s Medical Center, Quezon City, Philippines. The overall and type-specific incidences of hypocalcemia were determined. Patient and surgery-related factors were assessed and hypocalcemic events described. Results: Overall incidence of hypocalcemia is 11.98% distributed into symptomatic (10.74%) and asymptomatic (1.24%). The following patient-related factors were not found to be significantly associated with hypocalcemia: age, gender, thyroid disease and thyroid gland weight. Among surgery-related factors, the presence of concomitant complications of thyroidectomy (hoarseness and/or hematoma) and inadvertent parathyroidectomy were significantly associated with hypocalcemia both in the univariate [p=0.046; OR 2.369 (95%CI: 0.995-5.643) and p=0.027; OR 2.426 (95%CI: 1.084-5.432), respectively] and multivariate analyses [p=0.025; OR 2.842 (95%CI: 1.142-7.069) and p=0.013; OR 2.941 (95%CI: 1.252-6.907), respectively]. Other surgery-related factors were not found to be significantly associated with hypocalcemia: extent of thyroidectomy [total vs completion]; neck dissection; surgery duration (hours); and surgeon [consultant vs. trainee]. Among those with symptomatic hypocalcemia, manifestations occurred 29.85±23.07 hours post-operatively and these were: Chvostek’s (80.8%), acral paresthesia (76.9%), perioral numbness (46.1%), carpopedal spasm (15.3%), Trousseau’s (7.7%) and cramps (3.8%). Those who presented with manifestations of hypocalcemia but with normal serum iCa post-operatively comprised 33.9% of the study population and the majority presented with Chvostek’s sign (52%) and acral paresthesia (50%). Conclusion In this study, hoarseness and/or hematoma and inadvertent parathyroidectomy are risk factors for post-thyroidectomy hypocalcemia. Closer monitoring of these patients for hypocalcemia may be necessary.
Thyroidectomy ; Incidence ; Risk Factors

We report the case of a 61-year-old Filipino woman with postmenopausal virilization presenting with androgenic alopecia, progressive hirsutism and deepening voice over 5 years due to elevated testosterone levels. Ultrasound and computed tomography imaging suggested a left adnexal mass. Histology obtained following total abdominal hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (TAHBSO) demonstrated stromal luteoma of the left ovary. On immunohistochemistry, the tumor was positive for inhibin. Postoperatively, there was note of rapid normalization of testosterone level.
Hyperandrogenism

Objective: To determine the frequency of hypoglycemia in insulin-treated patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in the non-interventional International Operations Hypoglycemia Assessment Tool (IO HAT) study. Methodology: This sub-analysis included Filipino patients with T1DM or T2DM, aged 18 years and older, treated with insulin for more than 12 months, who completed the two-part self-assessment questionnaires (SAQ1 and SAQ2) and patient diaries that recorded hypoglycemia during retrospective (6 months/4 weeks before baseline) and prospective period (4 weeks after baseline (ClinicalTrials.gov number: NCT02306681). Results: A total of 671 patients were enrolled and completed the SAQ1 (62 patients with T1DM and 609 patients with T2DM). Almost all patients (100% in T1DM and 99.3% in T2DM) experienced at least 1 hypoglycemic event prospectively. The incidence of any hypoglycemia was also high in the prospective period compared to retrospective period (72.6 [95% CI: 64.8, 80.9] events PPY and 43.6 [95% CI: 37.8, 49.9] events PPY; p=0.001, respectively) in T1DM patients. Conclusion Among insulin-treated patients, higher rates of hypoglycemia were reported prospectively than retrospectively. This indicates that the patients in real-life setting often under-report hypoglycemia. Patient education can help in accurate reporting and appropriate management of hypoglycemia and diabetes.
Hypoglycemia ; Philippines

Objectives: This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of initial insulin therapy versus oral hypoglycemic agents in glucose control among newly diagnosed Type 2 diabetes patients. Methodology: This is a systematic review and meta-analysis of RCTs with quality grade B searched using the medical subject headings (MeSH): diabetes mellitus type 2, insulin, oral hypoglycemic agent, with adults newly diagnosed with type 2 DM as subjects and given insulin (± metformin) vs. OHA. Results were summarized as graphs and forest plots using the random effects due to foreseen sources of heterogeneity using Review Manager version 5.1. Results: Presence of substantial heterogeneity prevents us from making a conclusion. All four studies showed lower post treatment BMI among participants in the insulin treatment arm. An opposite finding was expected as insulin is known to cause weight gain. Main adverse effect was hypoglycemia. Conclusion Among newly diagnosed type 2 DM patients, there is insufficient evidence for or against the use of insulin compared to oral hypoglycemic agents as initial management in terms of improvement in glycemic control, decrease in insulin resistance, and improvement in beta cell function.
Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; Glycemic Control

Objective: To determine the effect of laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) on weight loss and the association between initial body mass index (BMI) and successful weight loss, defined as >50% excess weight loss (EWL) among obese Filipino adults at St. Luke’s Medical Center. Methodology: Data from 97 patients who were at least 18 years old at the time of gastric banding were reviewed retrospectively. Patient follow-up was poor 2 years post-surgery, which precluded analysis of follow-up data beyond 2 years. Changes in weight loss parameters from baseline to the different observation periods were carried out using paired t- test. To determine the association of different factors with success in weight loss, Independent t-test and Chi-square tests were used. A p-value ≤0.05 was considered significant. Results: Majority of the patients were female (61%) and Southeast Asian (77%). Ages ranged from 18 to 68 years. Mean BMI was 44.1 ± 0.1 kg/m2 and mean excess weight was 61.4 ± 26.5 kg. Excess weight loss of 43.84 ± 25.09% and BMI reduction of 21.54 ± 13.39% were attained at 2 years. Lower initial BMI with a mean of 38.12±3.28 kg/m2 was associated with successful weight loss, 1 year after gastric banding (p<0.001). Conclusion Patients attained 43.84% EWL 2 years after gastric banding. Those with higher initial BMI were less likely to achieve successful weight loss 1 year after gastric banding.
Bariatric Surgery ; Obesity ; Weight Loss

Objective: To present the results from the Philippine cohort of the A1chieve study receiving insulin detemir (IDet) ± oral antidiabetic drugs. Methodology: A1chieve is a multinational, 6-month, observational study of 66,726 people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), both insulin users and non-insulin users, started on IDet, insulin aspart or biphasic insulin aspart in 28 countries across four continents. This subgroup analysis evaluates the safety and effectiveness of IDet in 988 subjects from the Philippines. Results: At baseline the mean age, duration of diabetes and mean BMI were found to be 57±11.9 yrs, 6.9±5.3 yrs and 26±4.8 kg/m2 respectively. Majority of subjects were insulin-naive (84.3%) and glycemic control was poor in all the groups at baseline. At the end of 24 weeks, there were significant improvements following IDet initiation with a 2.1% reduction in mean HbA1c. The HbA1c target of <7% was achieved by 46.8% subjects at the study end. Although not statistically significant, there was a modest decrease in body weight in all the groups. There was no increase in the incidence of hypoglycemia among baseline insulin-naive subjects, while a significant reduction in hypoglycemia was seen among prior insulin users. Conclusions IDet appears to be an effective and safe option for individuals with T2DM in the Philippines. HbA1C was lowered to target, and there was no increase in incidence of hypoglycemia and body weight with IDet.
Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; Insulin Detemir ; Philippines

Objective: To determine the effect of metformin on maternal and neonatal outcome among pregnant Filipino women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Methodology: This is a retrospective cohort study of PCOS women who were on metformin treatment prior to achieving pregnancy. The women were divided into two groups: women who continued metformin during pregnancy and women who discontinued metformin at the time the pregnancy was confirmed. Determination of the effect of metformin on pregnancy outcomes were analyzed using chi-square test. Multivariate regression analysis was used to determine the factors related to spontaneous abortion. Result: A total of 101 women continued metformin during pregnancy while 60 women discontinued metformin. Women who continued metformin had lower rates of first trimester spontaneous abortion compared to those who discontinued metformin (5% versus 36.2%, p<0.001). There was no significant difference in gestational diabetes between those who continued and discontinued metformin during pregnancy (19.0% versus 32.6%, p=0.07). Logistic regression analysis showed that only metformin during pregnancy has a protective effect on abortion (OR=0.168; 95% CI 0.048,0.592; p=0.005). The differences in neonatal outcomes between the two groups did not achieve statistical significance. Conclusion In Filipino women with PCOS, continuous use of metformin during pregnancy reduces the rate of first trimester spontaneous abortion
Polycystic Ovary Syndrome ; Pregnancy Complications ; Metformin