Question: Dr. Wagenmakers, some of your work investigated physical fitness. Are Cushing’s patients as physically fit after Cushing’s as the normal population? 

Answer: After successful treatment, Cushing’s patients generally improve however some patients continue to complain of abdominal fat, physical disability and fatigue. We wondered if this might relate to impaired physical fitness. Thus, we undertook a study to measure peak oxygen uptake during physical exercise which is a well-established way to measure physical fitness. While this is a small study of 17 patients in remission from Cushing’s over 4 years compared to extensively matched, healthy controls, we found that Cushing’s patients had a significant lower peak oxygen uptake and could do less exercise than controls, indicating impairment of physical fitness. We suspect that this might be due to abnormalities in skeletal muscles and are investigating this at the moment. Rehabilitation programs may improve physical fitness levels.

Endo 2016: Physical Fitness Level after Long Term Remission of Cushing’s Syndrome: Does Biochemical Remission Lead to Full Functional Recovery? Poster Board FRI 408

Authors: Margreet A.E.M. Wagenmakers*(1), Sean H.P.P. Roerink (1), Dick H.J. Thijssen (2), Maria T.E Hopman (2), Anton JM Wagenmakers (3), Alberto M. Pereira (4), Johannes W.A. Smit (1), Romana T. Netea-Maier (1) and Ad RMM Hermus (5)

1 Radboud University Medical Center Nijmegen, Netherlands, 2 Radboud University Medical Center Nijmegen, Netherlands, 3 Liverpool John Moores University, United Kingdom, 4 Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, Netherlands, 5 Radboud University Medical Center, Netherlands

Newsletter: Summer, 2016