Endocrinology and Metabolism

Original Articles

Diabetes, obesity and metabolism
Association of Abdominal Myosteatosis and Visceral Fat Obesity with Arterial Stiffness: Min Jung Lee, Hong-Kyu Kim, Eun Hee Kim, Sung Jin Bae, Hyo-Jung Nam, Sang Hoon Lee, Chang Hee Jung, Woo Je Lee; Endocrinol Metab. 2026;41(4):543-557. Published online April 8, 2026; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3803/EnM.2025.2734

2,783 View
95 Download

Abstract PDF Supplementary Material PubReader ePub: Background
Arterial stiffness with aging predicts cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and target organ damage. While sarcopenia has been linked to arterial stiffness, the association of myosteatosis and visceral adiposity with arterial stiffness remains underexplored. As age-related fat redistribution, including myosteatosis and visceral obesity, often precedes overt sarcopenia, their early evaluation may be beneficial in preventing arterial stiffness. Therefore, this cross-sectional study aimed to assess whether myosteatosis and visceral obesity are associated with increased arterial stiffness.
Methods
A total of 6,004 subjects without CVD who underwent abdominal computed tomography and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) between 2012 and 2013 during health examinations were included. Visceral fat area and total abdominal muscle area (TAMA) were measured at the L3 vertebral level. Muscle quality was assessed using the normal attenuation muscle area (NAMA)/TAMA index, where a lower value indicates a reduced proportion of healthy muscle (NAMA) and a higher presence of myosteatosis.
Results
After adjusting for multiple cardiovascular risk factors, including myosteatosis, visceral obesity was significantly associated with elevated baPWV in men (odds ratio [OR]=1.32; 95% confidence interval [CI]=1.10 to 1.60; P=0.004). In contrast, in women, myosteatosis was significantly associated with elevated baPWV in a fully adjusted model that included visceral obesity (OR=3.26; 95% CI=1.13 to 9.44; P=0.029).
Conclusion
Ectopic fat infiltration, including visceral obesity and myosteatosis, was significantly associated with increased arterial stiffness. Notably, visceral obesity was significantly associated with elevated baPWV in men, while myosteatosis was significantly associated with elevated baPWV in women after adjustment.

Mineral, Bone & Muscle
Carnitine Metabolite as a Potential Circulating Biomarker for Sarcopenia in Men: Je Hyun Seo, Jung-Min Koh, Han Jin Cho, Hanjun Kim, Young‑Sun Lee, Su Jung Kim, Pil Whan Yoon, Won Kim, Sung Jin Bae, Hong-Kyu Kim, Hyun Ju Yoo, Seung Hun Lee; Endocrinol Metab. 2025;40(1):93-102. Published online November 28, 2024; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3803/EnM.2024.2117

5,830 View
130 Download
5 Web of Science
5 Crossref

Abstract PDF Supplementary Material PubReader ePub

Background
Sarcopenia, a multifactorial disorder involving metabolic disturbance, suggests potential for metabolite biomarkers. Carnitine (CN), essential for skeletal muscle energy metabolism, may be a candidate biomarker. We investigated whether CN metabolites are biomarkers for sarcopenia.
Methods
Associations between the CN metabolites identified from an animal model of sarcopenia and muscle cells and sarcopenia status were evaluated in men from an age-matched discovery (72 cases, 72 controls) and a validation (21 cases, 47 controls) cohort.
Results
An association between CN metabolites and sarcopenia showed in mouse and cell studies. In the discovery cohort, plasma C5-CN levels were lower in sarcopenic men (P=0.005). C5-CN levels in men tended to be associated with handgrip strength (HGS) (P=0.098) and were significantly associated with skeletal muscle mass (P=0.003). Each standard deviation increase in C5-CN levels reduced the odds of low muscle mass (odd ratio, 0.61; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.42 to 0.89). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) of CN score using a regression equation of C5-CN levels, for sarcopenia was 0.635 (95% CI, 0.544 to 0.726). In the discovery cohort, addition of CN score to HGS significantly improved AUROC from 0.646 (95% CI, 0.575 to 0.717; HGS only) to 0.727 (95% CI, 0.643 to 0.810; P=0.006; HGS+CN score). The improvement was confirmed in the validation cohort (AUROC=0.563; 95% CI, 0.470 to 0.656 for HGS; and AUROC=0.712; 95% CI, 0.569 to 0.855 for HGS+CN score; P=0.027).
Conclusion
C5-CN, indicative of low muscle mass, is a potential circulating biomarker for sarcopenia in men. Further studies are required to confirm these results and explore sarcopenia-related metabolomic changes.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

Clinical characteristics and risk factors of delayed ophthalmoplegia following cavernous sinus exploration in endoscopic pituitary adenoma surgery
Sun Mo Nam, Jong Ha Hwang, Yoon Hwan Byun, Seung Shin Park, Jung Hee Kim, Min-Sung Kim, Chul-Kee Park, Hee-Pyoung Park, Yong Hwy Kim
Pituitary.2026;[Epub] CrossRef
Association of handgrip strength with the plasma metabolomic profile: secondary analysis of a protein intervention study
Tilde Martinsen, Janine Wirth, Lorraine Brennan
Metabolomics.2026;[Epub] CrossRef
Molecular Pathogenesis of Sarcopenia: Regulatory Networks Involving MicroRNAs in Age-Related Skeletal Muscle Decline
Joseph Joju Kalan, Lijo N Varghese, Rajesh Katare
Frontiers in Bioscience-Landmark.2025;[Epub] CrossRef
Amino acid metabolites as potential circulating biomarkers for sarcopenia
Je Hyun Seo, Jung-Min Koh, Su Jung Kim, Pil Whan Yoon, Won Kim, Sung Jin Bae, Hong-Kyu Kim, Hyun Ju Yoo, Seung Hun Lee
Scientific Reports.2025;[Epub] CrossRef
Chronic liver diseases as a cause of sarcopenia development
D. P. Kurmaev, S. V. Bulgakova, E. V. Treneva, O. V. Kosareva, P. Ya. Merzlova, L. A. Sharonova, Yu. A. Dolgikh
Experimental and Clinical Gastroenterology.2025; (3): 119. CrossRef

Clinical Study
Gender-Dependent Reference Range of Serum Calcitonin Levels in Healthy Korean Adults: Eyun Song, Min Ji Jeon, Hye Jin Yoo, Sung Jin Bae, Tae Yong Kim, Won Bae Kim, Young Kee Shong, Hong-Kyu Kim, Won Gu Kim; Endocrinol Metab. 2021;36(2):365-373. Published online April 7, 2021; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3803/EnM.2020.939

12,340 View
179 Download
8 Web of Science
10 Crossref

Abstract PDF Supplementary Material PubReader ePub

Background
Serum calcitonin measurement contains various clinical and methodological aspects. Its reference level is wide and unclear despite sensitive calcitonin kits are available. This study aimed to identify the specific reference range in the healthy Korean adults.
Methods
Subjects were ≥20 years with available calcitonin (measured by a two-site immunoradiometric assay) data by a routine health checkup. Three groups were defined as all eligible subjects (group 1, n=10,566); subjects without self or family history of thyroid disease (group 2, n=5,152); and subjects without chronic kidney disease, autoimmune thyroid disease, medication of proton pump inhibitor/H2 blocker/steroid, or other malignancies (group 3, n=4,638).
Results
This study included 6,341 male and 4,225 female subjects. Males had higher mean calcitonin than females (2.3 pg/mL vs. 1.9 pg/mL, P<0.001) in group 1. This gender difference remained similar in groups 2 and 3. Calcitonin according to age or body mass index was not significant in both genders. Higher calcitonin in smoking than nonsmoking men was observed but not in women. Sixty-nine subjects had calcitonin higher than the upper reference limit (10 pg/mL) and 64 of them had factors associated with hypercalcitoninemia besides medullary thyroid cancer. Our study suggests the reference intervals for men who were non, ex-, current smokers, and women (irrespective of smoking status) as <5.7, <7.1, <7.9, and <3.6 pg/mL, respectively.
Conclusion
Specific calcitonin reference range should be provided considering for sex and smoking status. Taking account for several factors known to induce hypercalcitoninemia can help interpret the gray zone of moderately elevated calcitonin.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

The Pitfalls of Calcitonin as a Tumor Marker: Real-Life Data of Patients with Elevated Basal Calcitonin Levels but Without Evidence of Medullary Thyroid Carcinoma
Ann-Kathrin Lederer, Constantin-Leonard Jacob Kessler, Nabila Bouzakri, Oana Lozan, Florian Wild, Katharina Theresa Rauschkolb-Olk, Heidi Rossmann, Hauke Lang, Thomas J. Musholt
Journal of Clinical Medicine.2026; 15(7): 2500. CrossRef
Laboratory diagnostics and follow-up of medullary thyroid cancer
Luca Giovanella, Federica D’Aurizio, Petra Petranović Ovčariček, Jacquelien J Hillebrand
Journal of Molecular Endocrinology.2026;[Epub] CrossRef
Sexual dimorphism in neuro-endocrine-immune complex in intact rats
O. I. PLYSKA, A. A. VOROBIENKO
Experimental and Clinical Physiology and Biochemistry.2026; 2(106): 56. CrossRef
Circulating Biomarkers in Medullary Thyroid Carcinoma: Bridging Laboratory Complexities and Clinical Application Through Algorithm Design
Luca Giovanella, Federica D’Aurizio, Petra Petranović Ovčariček
Journal of Clinical Medicine.2025; 14(16): 5645. CrossRef
Determinants of circulating calcitonin value: analysis of thyroid features, demographic data, anthropometric characteristics, comorbidities, medications, and smoking habits in a population with histological full exclusion of medullary thyroid carcinoma
Pierpaolo Trimboli, Giuseppe Peloni, Dorotea Confalonieri, Elena Gamarra, Tommaso Piticchio, Francesco Frasca, Petra Makovac, Arnoldo Piccardo, Lorenzo Ruinelli
Frontiers in Oncology.2024;[Epub] CrossRef
Surgical treatment of solid variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma: Fifteen-year experience of a tertiary center
Katarina Tausanović, Marina Stojanović, Milan Jovanović, Boban Stepanović, Jovan Ilić, Sara Ivaniš, Vladan Živaljević
Medicinska istrazivanja.2024; 57(1): 121. CrossRef
Impact of dietary, lifestyle and sociodemographic factors on calcitonin levels in a healthy population
Ivana Gunjača, Mirjana Babić Leko, Nikolina Pleić, Ante Jurić, Dubravka Brdar, Vesela Torlak, Marko Vuletić, Ante Punda, Ozren Polašek, Caroline Hayward, Tatijana Zemunik
Bone.2024; 187: 117214. CrossRef
Some genetic differences in patients with rheumatoid arthritis
Hosam M. Ahmad, Zaki M. Zaki, Asmaa S. Mohamed, Amr E. Ahmed
BMC Research Notes.2023;[Epub] CrossRef
Presence or severity of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis does not influence basal calcitonin levels: observations from CROHT biobank
M. Cvek, A. Punda, M. Brekalo, M. Plosnić, A. Barić, D. Kaličanin, L. Brčić, M. Vuletić, I. Gunjača, V. Torlak Lovrić, V. Škrabić, V. Boraska Perica
Journal of Endocrinological Investigation.2022; 45(3): 597. CrossRef
Environmental Factors That Affect Parathyroid Hormone and Calcitonin Levels
Mirjana Babić Leko, Nikolina Pleić, Ivana Gunjača, Tatijana Zemunik
International Journal of Molecular Sciences.2021; 23(1): 44. CrossRef

Case Report

A Case of Malignant Pheochromocytoma Presenting as Inverted Takotsubo-Like Cardiomyopathy.: Jung Eun Jang, Hyuk Hee Kwon, Min Jung Lee, Chang Hee Jung, Sung Jin Bae, Hong Kyu Kim, Woo Je Lee; Endocrinol Metab. 2012;27(1):98-104. Published online March 1, 2012; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3803/EnM.2012.27.1.98

3,017 View
25 Download

Abstract PDF: Takotsubo cardiomyopathy or stress induced cardiomyopathy is characterized by acute transient left ventricular apical ballooning without significant coronary artery disease. The pathophysiology of Takotsubo cardiomyopathy remains unclear, but it has been suggested that the stress related neurohumoral factors, especially catecholamines, play an important role. Recently, several reports have described an inverted Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, which is characterized by the dysfunction of the basal and mid-ventricular segments sparing the apex of the heart. In this report, we present a case of a 50-year-old female with a transient left ventricular dysfunction in an inverted Takotsubo pattern, that later was diagnosed as a malignant pheochromocytoma.

Original Article

Analysis of Clinical Features of Korean Patients with Adrenocortical Carcinoma.: Chan Ho Yoon, Tae Sik Jung, Hye Seung Jung, Eun Yonug Lee, Sung Jin Bae, Ji Youn Kim, Jae Hoon Chung, Yong Ki Min, Myung Shik Lee, Moon Kyu Lee, Kwang Won Kim; J Korean Endocr Soc. 2006;21(1):47-52. Published online February 1, 2006; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3803/jkes.2006.21.1.47

4,117 View
20 Download
1 Crossref

Abstract PDF

BACKGROUND
Adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC) is an extremely rare tumor. Its early detection is difficult and its prognosis is poor. METHOD: We retrospectively analyzed the medical records of 13 patients with ACC between 1995 and 2005 at Samsung Medical Center. Their clinical features and prognosis were evaluated. RESULTS: The average age of the patients with ACC was 40 years (2~75 years). Eight patients were men and five were women. On the first visit, eight of 13 patients (62%) complained abdominal pain, and abdominal mass was palpable in five of 13 patients (38%). Urinary concentration of 17-ketosteroid collected for 24 hours was increased in two of eight patients (25%). Three out of 13 patients were identified as having functioning adrenal tumors (1 Cushing's syndrome and 2 androgen-producing tumors), and the other 10 patients had hormonally inactive adrenal tumors. Ten patients had tumors in left adrenal gland, and three had in right adrenal gland. At the time of diagnosis, four patients were classified as having stage II, seven as stage III, and two as stage IV. Twelve patients underwent adrenalectomy. One of them received additional chemotherapy, and two patients were treated with external radiation therapy after surgery. The other one patient was treated only with chemotherapy due to the presence of liver metastasis. It was possible to continue the regular follow-up in eight of 13 patients. The median duration of follow-up was 39 months (7~114 months). Six of them are still alive (three have no evidence of disease, one had persistence of disease, and two had recurrence of disease during follow-up period). Two patients died of multiple metastases and lung metastasis, respectively. CONCLUSION: Radical surgery is the only curative approach and is recommended for all patients with resectable tumors, even though in those patients with recurrent disease. There is no consensus concerning adjuvant therapy.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

A Case Report of Bilateral Adrenocortical Carcinoma Complicated by Adrenal Insufficiency
Min Joo Kim, Jung Hee Kim, Tae Young Kim, Sang Wan Kim
Endocrinology and Metabolism.2011; 26(3): 243. CrossRef

Case Report

Upper Airway Obstruction Caused by Intratracheal Ectopic Thyroid Tissue during Pregnancy.: Eun Young Lee, Byung Wan Lee, Jhingook Kim, Sung Jin Bae, Tae Sik Jung, Hye Seung Jung, Yong Ki Min, Myung Shik Lee, Moon Kyu Lee, Kwang Won Kim, Jae Hoon Chung; J Korean Endocr Soc. 2005;20(4):413-420. Published online August 1, 2005; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3803/jkes.2005.20.4.413

3,675 View
25 Download
1 Crossref

Abstract PDF

Herein is report an extremely rare case of an intratracheal ectopic thyroid gland related with pregnancy. A 34-year-old woman, in gestational week 11, presented with stridor, progressive dyspnea and a choking sensation during her second pregnancy. Computed tomography of the neck and chest revealed a round intratracheal mass obstructing the airway. A bronchoscopic biopsy with LASER cauterization was performed, and the histological finding revealed normal thyroid tissue. The external thyroid of the patient was evaluated, but only found benign nodules in the thyroid gland. She underwent a segmental resection of the trachea, including the mass and the 1st tracheal cartilage. The histological findings revealed the intratracheal mass to be composed of benign thyroid tissue with nodular hyperplasia. After surgery, no pulmonary symptoms were evident. This case suggested the effect of pregnancy on thyroid tissue stimulatied due to a combination of an increasing human chorionic gonadotropin(hCG) level and relative iodine deficiency during pregnancy. This is the first report on the detection of intratracheal ectopic thyroid tissue during pregnancy in Korea.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

A case of mediastinal ectopic thyroid presenting with a paratracheal mass
Eun Roh, Eun Shil Hong, Hwa Young Ahn, So-Yeon Park, Ho Il Yoon, Kyong Soo Park, Young Joo Park
The Korean Journal of Internal Medicine.2013; 28(3): 361. CrossRef

First
Prev
Page of 1
Next
Last

Search