@article{3049181,
    title = "Lanreotide in the treatment of patients with thyroid eye disease",
    author = "Krassas, GE and Kaltsas, T and Dumas, A and Pontikides, N and Tolis, G",
    journal = "European Journal of Endocrinology",
    year = "1997",
    volume = "136",
    number = "4",
    pages = "416-422",
    publisher = "Universitetsforlaget (Scandinavian University Press)",
    issn = "0804-4643, 1479-683X",
    doi = "10.1530/eje.0.1360416",
    abstract = "Octreotide, a potent synthetic somatostatin (SM) analogue was recently
evaluated and found to have a beneficial effect in thyroid eye disease
(TED), mostly in those patients with a positive Octreoscan-111.
Lanreotide (LRT; Somatuline-Ipsen), a new SM long-acting analogue, is
more active than natural SM and shows a much longer duration of action.
The aim of the present preliminary study was to evaluate the therapeutic
effect of LRT in the treatment of TED. Fire patients , three males and
two females, mean age 50.6 +/- 7.6 S.D. (45-64) years, all with severe
symptoms of TED were studied. A similar number of patients, matched for
age, sex and severity of ophthalmopathy served as controls. All the
patients and controls were investigated with orbital scintigraphy using
In-111 DTPA-D-Phe(1)-octreotide (Octreoscan-111) and selected on the
basis of positive octreoscan. The NOSPECS system, as adapted by
Donaldson et al. (Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 1973
37 276-285) and a disease activity score, as proposed recently by an
International Workshop, have been followed in this study in order to
evaluate the response to treatment. The fire patients who comprised the
treatment group received 0.04 g LRT i.m. once every 3 weeks over a
period of 3 months, after which the Octreoscan-111 was repeated. The
control patients were given an injection of water i.m., also once every
2 weeks for months, after which they were evaluated clinically. No
Octreoscan-111 was performed in the controls. All patients and controls
were evaluated by the same physician, who was unaware of the type of
treatment used. A decrease in the NOSPECS score and the clinical
activity score was regarded as a positive response, while no change or
an increase in the NOSPECS score along with no clinical improvement was
regarded as a negative response. After 3 months of treatment with LRT,
four patients showed a statistically significant improvement in
ophthalmopathy in both eyes and one in one eye. Three of the control
patients with TED did not show any change, one showed a minor
improvement in one eye and no change in the other and one showed
deterioration in both eyes. An interesting finding was that orbital
Octreoscan-111 activity was absent in all the patients after LRT
treatment. In conclusion, these preliminary results show that LRT has a
beneficial effect on patients with TED, and that since it has to he
given only once every 2 weeks, it is probably superior to any other form
of SM treatment. However, as the number of patients was small, further
studies are needed to confirm our results."
}