Assessment of serum levels resistin in girls with anorexia nervosa. Part II. Relationships between serum levels of resistin and thyroid, adrenal and gonadal hormones.

OBJECTIVES: Thyroid, adrenal glands and gonadal hormones play a role in maintaining metabolic homeostasis of the body via the receptors located in the adipose tissue. The correlations between serum resistin (RES) and function of other hormonal axes in patients with AN have not been established, yet. Therefore, the aim of this study is: 1) assessment of concentrations of thyroid hormones (FT4, TSH), adrenal hormones (ACTH, cortisol), sex hormones (LH, FSH, estradiol, testosterone); 2) establishing their relationship with BMI and 3) analysis of correlations between examined hormones and RES serum concentrations in adolescent female patients with AN.

DESIGN AND SETTING: Serum RES (ELISA) and fT4, TSH, ACTH, LH, FSH, estradiol and testosterone (ECLIA) concentrations have been assayed in 195 adolescent girls: 87 with restrictive AN, 17 with not otherwise specified eating disorders (NOS), 30 with simple obesity (OB) and 61 healthy (H) subjects.

RESULTS: Mean serum FT4, LH and estradiol concentrations were significantly lower (p=0.015; p<0.0001; p<0.0001, respectively) in AN than in OB group, and cortisol increased (p<0.001) compared to OB and H subjects. In all examined subjects BMI correlated positively (p<0.0001) with LH (r=0.61) and estradiol (r=0.30), and negatively with cortisol (r=-0.35; p=0.008). Also the significant positive relationship between serum RES and FT4 (r=0.34), LH (r=0.57) as well as estradiol (r=0.28) was observed, whereas serum cortisol correlated negatively with RES (r=-0.40).

CONCLUSION: Changes in resistin serum concentrations in eating disorders may be involved in the altered regulation of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal, thyroid and gonadal axes.