Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2022C00580:front:0:p2
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2022C00580
Segment Type: other
Provision Reference: 
Character Range: 2919–6172

Authority
This instrument is made under subsection 196B(2) of the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986.
     5               Application
This instrument applies to a claim to which section 120A of the VEA or section 338 of the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004 applies.
     6               Definitions
The terms defined in the Schedule 1 - Dictionary have the meaning given when used in this instrument.
     7               Kind of injury, disease or death to which this Statement of Principles relates
(1)          This Statement of Principles is about hypopituitarism and death from hypopituitarism.
Meaning of hypopituitarism
(2)          For the purposes of this Statement of Principles, hypopituitarism:
(a)        means an endocrine disease characterised by biochemically-documented deficient production of one or more pituitary hormones, sufficient to produce clinical symptoms and signs, or to necessitate pituitary hormone replacement therapy, as a result of loss or damage to pituitary hormone-secreting cells in the pituitary gland, hypothalamus or pituitary stalk; and
(b)        excludes heritable and congenital forms of hypopituitarism.
                Note 1: Pituitary hormones are growth hormone, follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinising hormone, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), prolactin, oxytocin and antidiuretic hormone (ADH).
                Note 2: The clinical presentation of hypopituitarism can be acute or chronic, and the order and amount of the specific hormone deficiency depends on the nature and speed of damage to the hypothalamic–pituitary region.
(3)          While hypopituitarism attracts ICD‑10‑AM code E23.0, in applying this Statement of Principles the meaning of hypopituitarism is that given in subsection (2).
(4)          For subsection (3), a reference to an ICD-10-AM code is a reference to the code assigned to a particular kind of injury or disease in The International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, Tenth Revision, Australian Modification (ICD-10-AM), Tenth Edition, effective date of 1 July 2017, copyrighted by the Independent Hospital Pricing Authority, ISBN 978-1-76007-296-4.
Death from hypopituitarism
(5)          For the purposes of this Statement of Principles, hypopituitarism, in relation to a person, includes death from a terminal event or condition that was contributed to by the person's hypopituitarism.
            Note: terminal event is defined in the Schedule 1 – Dictionary.
     8               Basis for determining the factors
The Repatriation Medical Authority is of the view that there is sound medical‑scientific evidence that indicates that hypopituitarism and death from hypopituitarism can be related to relevant service rendered by veterans, members of Peacekeeping Forces, or members of the Forces under the VEA, or members under the MRCA.
Note: MRCA, relevant service and VEA are defined in the Schedule 1 – Dictionary.
     9               Factors that must exist
At least one of the following factors must as a minimum exist before it can be said that a reasonable hypothesis has been raised connecting hypopituitarism or death from hypopituitarism with the circumstances