Clinical Investigation Unit

The Clinical Investigation Unit is situated in the Jack Pryor Unit on Level 3 East In-patients. It consists of an administration office and a clinical area with three reclining chairs. Patients are allowed to bring their own personal entertainment with headphones.

A wide range of specialist blood and urine tests are performed to diagnose and monitor patients with endocrine or hormonal disorders. Highly skilled specialist nurses perform these tests in a relaxed and pleasant environment.

Education and Training

Staff are part of a multidisciplinary team and both medical and nursing student spend time with the Endocrine Specialist Nurses (ESN) in the CIU and in the Endocrine Clinics.

Many endocrine conditions are life long, and so it is vital that patients and their families understand their conditions in detail. The endocrine specialist nurses play a key role in this, and so provide individualised education sessions for some patients.

Support Groups

The unit is involved in patient support groups for many endocrine disorders such as The Pituitary Foundation, Turner Syndrome society, Addison’s Support and Cushing’s Support Group. For details of any of the endocrine support groups please contact CIU staff.

Endocrine conditions

This list is not exhaustive but these are the main endocrine conditions investigated in the Clinical Investigation Unit:

Pituitary tumours

Acromegaly

Cushing’s Syndrome

Prolactinoma

Hypopituitarism

Diabetes insipidus

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

Premature ovarian failure

Disorders of low testosterone

Congenital adrenal hyperplasia

Addison’s disease

Long term steroid treatment

Congenital adrenal hyperplasia

Phaeochromocytoma

Conn’s (Hyperaldosteronism)

Insulinoma

Growth Hormone Deficiency

Endocrine Dynamic Tests

Dynamic tests involve the measurements of hormone levels in special situations eg at specific times of the day, or before and after giving specific tablets, injections or infusions. These need to be done by highly trained and experienced staff and so are all performed on the CIU by specialist nurses. This list includes most of the common tests performed in the CIU. Please note: most of these test can only be requested by consultant endocrinologists, but those marked with an asterix* can be requested by other specialities within NNUH.

• Short Synacthen Test*
  This is a test for Addison’s disease, or to see whether the adrenal glands can still make the hormone cortisol in people who have been taking steroids for a long time.
  A modified version of this test is also used to diagnose congenital adrenal hyperplasia.
• Hydrocortisone Day Curve
  This is a test to monitor the cortisol levels throughout the day in patients who need steroid hormone replacement therapy.
• Water Deprivation Test
  This prolonged test is to confirm the hypothalamic disorder Diabetes Insipidus as a cause of extreme thirst and urinary problems.
• Insulin Stress Test
  This is a test for suspected hypopituitarism and Growth Hormone Deficiency
• GHRH-Arginine Test
  This is an alternative test for hypopituitarism and for diagnosing growth hormone deficiency.
• Glucagon Test
  This is an alternative test for hypopituitarism and is used in people unable to have an insulin stress test.
• Growth Hormone Profile
  This is a series of tests for monitoring the treatment of acromegaly.
• Prolonged Glucose Tolerance Test
  This is a specially prolonged glucose test for diagnosing reactive hypoglycaemia.
• Thyroxine Absorption Test
  This is a test to investigate unusual thyroid function tests, and to establish how well thyroxine is absorbed into the blood stream.
• Zoledronic Acid infusions
  These treatments are given on the CIU to treat osteoporosis, Paget’s Disease and hypercalcaemia.
• Autonomic Function Test
  This is a series of measurements to test for damage to the autonomic nervous system.
• Venous sampling
  This highly specialised test is coordinated through Interventional Radiography and is used to help localise very small tumours of the endocrine system.
• Cushing’s Day Curve

This is a test to monitor the cortisol levels throughout the day in patients with suspected Cushing’s    Syndrome.

72 hours fast

This is a test for diagnosing Insulinoma. This will be done on Endocrine ward.

Staff Members

• Administrators- Sophie Strong (waiting list co-ordinator), Denise May(secretary)

 

• Senior Endocrine Specialist Nurse (sister -in- charge)- Neetha Joseph

 

• Endocrine Specialist Nurses– Frances Van Beveren, Kathryn Hindley, Kanakadurga Manoj, Romela Abulon

 

Contact Details

Main Telephone Number: 01603 286360 direct dial

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