Acromegaly

Complications of Acromegaly

Possible complications If acromegaly is left untreated, you may beat risk of the following health problems: Type 2 diabetes High blood pressure (hypertension) Cardiovascular disease Cardiomyopathy (a disease of the heart muscle) Arthritis as a result of overgrowth of bone and cartilage Bowel polyps , which can potentially turn into bowel cancer if left untreated Left untreated, these complications can become serious and fatal.

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Articles for acromegaly

Introduction

Acromegaly is a condition in which the body produces too much growth hormone, leading to the excess growth of body tissues over time. Acromegaly is a genetic condition which develops when the pituitary glands in the brain overproduce growth hormone. This usually occurs before the onset of puberty.

Symptoms of Acromegaly

Acromegaly can cause a wide range of symptoms that tend to develop slowly over time. Typical symptoms include: joint pain; large hands and feet; carpal tunnel syndrome (compression of the nerve in the wrist, causing numbness and weakness of the hands); thick, coarse, oily skin; skin tags.

Causes of Acromegaly

Acromegaly is caused by excessive production of growth hormone. This usually occurs as the result of a benign (non-cancerous) brain tumour in the pituitary gland called an adenoma, but rare cases have been linked to tumours elsewhere in the body, such as in the lungs and pancreas.