Clinical manifestations of acromegaly: case report
Pokramovich Yu.G., Dreval' A.V.

M.F. Vladimirskiy Moscow Regional Research and Clinical Institute, Moscow

Acromegaly is a rare neuroendocrine disorder resulted from the overproduction of somatotropic hormone (usually caused by pituitary adenoma) which occurs in individuals after the growth has stopped. It is characterized by pathological disproportional growth of bones, cartilages, soft tissues, and visceral organs and dysfunctions of cardiovascular and respiratory systems and peripheral endocrine glands as well as metabolic disorders. Clinically, acromegaly is characterized by rapid development of systemic and organ abnormalities which significantly reduce the quality of life and result in early disability and death. Acromegaly remains clinically under-recognized. Time from symptom onset to the diagnosis is, on average, five to ten years. As a consequence, the patient has multiple and sometimes irreversible complications which negatively impact survival. Even in typical signs, the diagnosis of acromegaly may be late. However, clinical suspicion of this condition does not always lead to the diagnosis, e.g., when the patient is referred to the surgery for pituitary adenoma which may be considered as hormonally inactive tumor. The lack of somatostatin analogues which significantly reduce tumor size may result in inadequate preoperative management.

Key words: acromegaly, pituitary gland, diagnosis, IGF-1, somatotropin, diagnostics, symptoms.

For citation: Pokramovich Yu.G., Dreval' A.V. Clinical manifestations of acromegaly: case report // RMJ. 2017. № 1. P. 57–60.