Endocrine Weight Loss Study Guide 2026
Everything you need to pass the Endocrine Weight Loss exam in one place: the exam format, every topic to study, real practice questions with explanations, flashcards, and full-length practice tests. Free, no sign-up needed.
📚 Endocrine Weight Loss Topics to Study (21)
✍️ Sample Endocrine Weight Loss Questions & Answers
1. Peptide YY (PYY) is released by L-cells in the distal gut in response to food intake and primarily acts to:
PYY is a satiety hormone that inhibits food intake by acting on hypothalamic Y2 receptors and slows gastric emptying to promote fullness.
2. Which receptor does naltrexone/bupropion (Contrave) target to reduce food reward and craving?
Naltrexone blocks opioid mu-receptors that normally inhibit POMC neurons, while bupropion inhibits dopamine/norepinephrine reuptake; together they suppress food reward and increase satiety.
3. A postmenopausal woman begins gaining significant abdominal weight despite no change in diet or activity. Her TSH is normal. Which hormonal change is the most likely contributing factor?
Loss of estrogen at menopause removes its suppressive effect on visceral fat accumulation, resulting in abdominal weight gain even without caloric changes, a hallmark of the menopausal body composition shift.
4. Which 24-hour urinary test is used to confirm autonomous cortisol overproduction in suspected Cushing's syndrome?
24-hour urinary free cortisol measures unbound cortisol excreted over a full day, reflecting integrated cortisol production and is one of the confirmatory tests for Cushing's syndrome.
5. Radioactive iodine (RAI) therapy for Graves' disease often results in post-treatment weight gain because:
RAI ablates thyroid tissue, commonly resulting in permanent hypothyroidism; until adequately replaced with levothyroxine, the ensuing hypothyroid state promotes weight gain.
6. A patient with hypothyroidism gains weight primarily because of:
Hypothyroid weight gain results from reduced metabolic rate (lower thermogenesis) plus accumulation of glycosaminoglycan-rich interstitial fluid (myxedema), though the latter is not true fat.