Acromegaly is a hormonal disbalance in which the bones of hands, legs, and face grow rapidly and go out of shape. This happens when the pituitary gland of the human body produces excess growth hormone during the period of adulthood. It is usually seen that acromegaly develops in middle age people though people of any age can be affected, in those cases, the symptoms are not very prominent and physical changes are seen gradually. In some children, too much growth hormone affects the height where their height grows abnormally, this condition is called gigantism.
Symptoms
The main symptoms of acromegaly are enlarged bones of hand, feet, and mouth. It causes gradual changes to the overall feature of the human body such as wider spacing between the teeth, thickened lips, and protruding brow and lower jaw. Apart from all this, there are several other symptoms such as:
- Body odor and excessive sweating
- Fatigue and weakness in the muscles
- Headache
- Weight gain
- Enlargement of the tongue
- Erectile dysfunction in men
- Less interest in sex
- Inability to have a sound sleep
- Irregularities of the menstrual cycle in women
- Severe snoring because of the air blockage in the upper airway
- Vision impairment
- Skin tags which are the small outgrowth of skin tissues
- Thickened, coarse, and oily skin
- Husky and deepened voice due to enlargement of the vocal cords
- Enlargement of organs such as heart
These symptoms develop gradually, even the people close to you might not be able to notice them. But the doctors suggest that if any of the symptoms are seen, early diagnosis can help in getting proper care. Otherwise, it can lead to serious complications.
Causes
The main cause of acromegaly is the production of excess growth hormones by the pituitary gland over time. The growth hormone plays a crucial role in managing the physical growth of the human body. When the growth hormone is produced by the pituitary gland, it travels through the bloodstream and triggers the liver to produce insulin-like growth factor 1, which stimulates the growth of tissues and bones. But when the growth hormone is secreted excess in amount by the pituitary gland, it allows the liver to produce excess insulin-like growth factor 1, which causes abnormal growth of the skeleton and soft tissues leading to acromegaly.
There are other reasons as well which makes the pituitary gland produce excess growth hormones such as:
Pituitary tumors- In most cases of acromegaly, pituitary tumor or adenoma which is noncancerous, is seen to be a reason. It affects the pituitary gland which in turn produces excess growth hormone leading to acromegaly.Non-pituitary tumor- In very rare cases, it is seen that tumors in other parts of the body such as lungs and pancreas produce a hormone called growth hormone-releasing hormone, which instigates the pituitary gland to produce more growth hormones.
Treatment
Treatment for acromegaly depends upon the overall health and age of the patient. As per the physicians, the main goal of the treatment should be:
- To bring down the production of growth hormone to a normal level
- To make sure that the function of the pituitary gland is normal
- Treat the hormonal deficiencies in the body
- Improve the symptoms of acromegaly in the human body
- Relieve the pressure around tumors in the pituitary gland
Acromegaly can be treated in several ways such as:
- Surgery- Surgery is done to remove any tumor in the human body which causes the pituitary gland to produce excess growth hormone.
- Medication- Medications are prescribed in the initial symptoms of acromegaly to control the production of growth hormones and also to shrink large tumors before surgery.
Radiation- Radiation is used to remove the small sections of the tumor left after surgery or to destroy large tumors.
Disclaimer: The information in no way constitutes, or should be construed as medical advice. Nor is the above article an endorsement of any research findings discussed in the article an endorsement for any of the source publications.
