Endocrines (Dec 2024)

Multiple Osteoporotic Fractures in Cushing Syndrome: A Case Report and a Review of the Literature

  • Ariadni Spyroglou,
  • Panagiota Konstantakou,
  • Konstantinos Iliakopoulos,
  • Vasiliki Themelidi,
  • Dorothea Tsekoura,
  • Denise Kolomodi,
  • Georgios Kyriakopoulos,
  • Pantelis Antonakis,
  • Konstantinos Bramis,
  • Achilles Chatziioannou,
  • George Mastorakos,
  • Manousos M. Konstadoulakis,
  • Krystallenia I. Alexandraki

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/endocrines5040043
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 5, no. 4
pp. 600 – 612

Abstract

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Background: Osteoporotic fractures are a common clinical sign of Cushing syndrome (CS). However, Cushing diagnosis can occur years after this clinical manifestation. Methods: Herein, we present the case of a 45-year-old woman who was referred to our department for further diagnosis and treatment. Results: The patient was already under treatment for arterial hypertension and osteoporosis and was recently diagnosed with dyslipidemia and type 2 diabetes. She reported several previous fractures starting already 8 years before presentation. An adrenal CS was diagnosed, and the patient was treated with laparoscopic adrenalectomy, with a subsequent complete remission of her hypercortisolism. This case report presenting a particularly long time gap between initial osteoporosis signs and the final diagnosis underlines the need for an investigation into secondary osteoporosis in low-energy fractures also in the peripheral skeleton. In this context, we performed a literature review, including case reports with fragility fractures that were attributed to endogenous CS. Conclusions: In summary, a delayed diagnosis of CS in patients with a previous accumulation of such fractures is a worrisome observation and should be considered in everyday clinical practice in order to improve the timely diagnosis and treatment of CS.

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