Endocrinology and Diabetes (Paediatrics)

Our Receptionist

• Rayna Serralheiro

Our Medical Secretary

• Hannah Rundle

Our Diabetes Educators

• Jen Ashford
• Helen Hysted
• Jenny Lee
• Cliodhna Myles
• Ruth Kearsey
• Eilidh Nicol
• David Lee

Our Endocrine Specialist Nurses

• Karis Reyes
• Susan Sparrow
• Samantha Gorman
• Betty Labeja

Our Consultants

• Ken Ong
• Ajay Thankamony
• Rachel Williams
• Emile Hendriks
• Sandra Walton-Betancourth
• Loredana Marcovecchio

Our Doctors in Training

• Xanthippi Tseretopoulou
• Vidya Viswanath
• Geetha Nicholsion
• Deji Jaiyesimi

Our Doctors Doing Research

• Julia Fuchs

Our Psychology Team

• Neena Ramful
• Harriet Garfield

Our Play Specialist

• Angela Musaid

Our Nurses Supporting Research

• Julie Harris
• Criona O’Brien
• Ann-Marie Wardell
• Suzanne Smith

What Conditions do we Treat?

We provide care for a wide range of hormone (endocrine) conditions that can affect how children and young people grow and develop.

• Growth and puberty disorders
• Thyroid disorders
• Pituitary disorders
• Adrenal gland disorders (e.g. cortisol)
• Disorders of sex development (differences in sex development; DSD)
• Glucose disorders
• Water and salt balance disorders
• Bone health and calcium metabolism
• Endocrine tumours and Endocrine Effects of Childhood Cancer
• Complications related to excess weight
• Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) in adolescents
• Genetic endocrine syndromes

Children and young people are seen at the Weston Centre on Monday to Fridays from 09:00 to 17:30 hours.

Diabetes

• Monday morning (Annual Review)
• Monday afternoon (Diabetes Technology)
• Thursday morning (Diabetes in children < 13 years)
• Thursday afternoon (Diabetes in children 13-16 years and Transition clinic for young people 16 to 19 years jointly with the Adult Diabetes team)
• Friday morning (Technology clinic and High HbA1c clinic)
• Diabetes Educator led clinics (Monday to Friday, various times)
• Diabetes Dietician consultations (Monday to Friday, various times)
• Psychology consultations (Monday to Friday, various times)

Endocrinology

• General endocrinology (Tuesdays and Wednesdays)
• Severe Insulin Resistance (2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month)

• Bone health (with Paediatric Rheumatology)- Second Monday of each month
• Endocrine late effects of childhood cancer (with Paediatric Oncology) - First Monday of each month
• Endocrine Transition (with the Adult Endocrine team)- On a Monday four times per year
• Disorders of Sex development (with Paediatric Urology and Gynaecology) - Second Tuesday of each month
• Endocrine genetics (with Clinical Genetics) - Wednesday, once a month
• Hyperlipidaemia – On a Monday six times per year
• Complications related to excess weight (with Dietetics, Psychology and others)
• Neuroendocrine tumors (with the Adult Endocrine team)

Children and young people requiring inpatient care are admitted to the Paediatric Wards (D2, C3 and F3) at Addenbrookes Hospital.

We provide daily subspecialty reviews and overview dynamic endocrine testing when required.

We work in partnership with other subspecialties within the Trust to provide specialist support in neonatal and paediatric intensive care settings.

Elective admissions are coordinated by our team of Nurses. They contact families to discuss and agree admission plans.

• Management of hormone deficiencies: replacement therapy for thyroid hormone, growth hormone, adrenal hormones, testosterone, oestradiol, vasopressin
• Management of hormone excess: suppression of early puberty, Cushing syndrome, thyroid over-secretion, hyperinsulinism, other hormone excesses
• Other hormone therapies: growth hormone therapy for short stature (various conditions), bone fragility (zoledronate or pamidronate infusion), Leptin therapy for severe insulin resistance
• Management of type 1 diabetes and other forms of diabetes: multiple daily insulin injections; continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion; hybrid closed loop therapy

You will meet one of our very experienced Nurses who will ask you a few questions and measure you (parent’s height at your first visit, and child’s height, weight, blood pressure and pulse rate. If blood tests are likely to be performed at this visit, ‘numbing’ cream may be offered.

As Addenbrookes Hospital is a University Hospital, our clinics are often attended by Health Care professionals (doctors and nurses) in training. Your child will be seen by a Consultant or Doctor at the late stages of their training, and may be accompanied by a Medical or Nursing student. You will be offered the option to not include students at your consultation.

During the consultation, a management plan will be agreed with you and your child. If a follow up appointment is required, you can book this at the same visit, otherwise, we will book it at a later date and send you the details by post.

Endocrine stimulation tests (these may take between 1 to 3 hours) are performed by our specialist nurses in the Paediatric Day Unit or on the ward (for inpatients).

Children and young people can be referred by their GP, a general paediatrician or another specialist team. We are unable to accept self-referrals.

All referrals are reviewed and prioritised by a consultant.

New cases of diabetes are often admitted through the Emergency department and after a few days on an inpatient ward are the followed up in our outpatient diabetes clinics.

We work in partnership with the University of Cambridge, through the University Department of Paediatrics, Institute of Metabolic Sciences, and Medical Research Council Epidemiology Unit.

We are a centre for paediatric research in diabetes and endocrinology, leading or collaborating in a large number of national and international studies:

• CLOuD (opens in a new tab) (Artificial Pancreas Study for patients with newly diagnosed Type 1 Diabetes) and other closed loop studies
• INNODIA (opens in a new tab) (An innovative approach towards understanding and arresting Type 1 Diabetes
• ITAD (opens in a new tab) (Interleukin-2 Therapy of autoimmunity of diabetes
• ADDRESS2 (opens in a new tab) (Database for patients with Type 1 Diabetes)
• MELD-ATG (opens in a new tab) (Minimum effective low dose - Anti-human thymocyte globulin in type 1 diabetes)
• studies on growth hormone therapy, small for gestational age, disorders of sex development.

We are committed to the training of health care professionals (doctors, nurses, dieticians, and psychologist) in Paediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes.

We provide subspecialty training for doctors completing the GRID training in Paediatric Endocrinology or the Specialist Interest Module in Diabetes, both programmes fully accredited by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.

Networks we are part of

East of England Children and Young People’s Diabetes Network (opens in a new tab): set up in 2010 with the aim of improving and standardising care for all children and young people with type 1 diabetes across the East of England. The network is made up of 13 hospital trusts – comprising 17 units delivering care to around 3000 children and young people with type 1 diabetes.

• British Society for Paediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes (BSPED) (opens in a new tab) Information for young people and families
• European Society for Paediatric Endocrinology (ESPE) (opens in a new tab) Information for young people and families
• NICE (opens in a new tab) National Institute for Heath and Care Excellence
• The Pituitary Foundation (opens in a new tab)
• Child Growth Foundation (opens in a new tab)
• Turner Syndrome Support Society (opens in a new tab)
• British Thyroid Foundation (opens in a new tab)
• Addison’s Disease Self-Help Group (opens in a new tab)
• Living with CAH (opens in a new tab) Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia
• Klinefelter Syndrome Association (opens in a new tab)
• Prader-Willi Syndrome Association UK (opens in a new tab)
• Association for Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia Disorders (opens in a new tab)
• Duchenne UK (opens in a new tab) - endocrine associated problems
• Parathyroid UK (opens in a new tab)
• Brittle Bone Society (opens in a new tab)
• National Organization for Rare Disorders (opens in a new tab)
• The Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center (GARD): Support for Patients and Families (opens in a new tab)

Diabetes

• Children and Young People’s East of England Diabetes Network (opens in a new tab)
• International Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Diabetes (opens in a new tab)
• Diabetes UK (opens in a new tab)
• JDRF (opens in a new tab)
• Association of Children Diabetes Clinicians (opens in a new tab)
• Association of British Clinical Diabetologists (opens in a new tab)
• Diabetes Genes (opens in a new tab) Genetic types of diabetes
• DigiBete (opens in a new tab) Place to help young people and families to manage Type 1 Diabetes
• Diabetes and Sport (opens in a new tab)
• Young Minds (opens in a new tab) UK charity for children and young people's mental health