Acromegaly

 

Acromegaly is a disorder that causes enlargement of hands and feet due to excessive presence of growth hormones

 

 

Common symptoms are, 

1. Doughy-feeling skin over the face and extremities

2. Thick and hard nails

3. Deepening of creases on the forehead and nasolabial folds

4. Noticeably large pores

5. Thick and edematous eyelids

6. Enlargement of the lower lip and nose (the nose takes on a triangular configuration)

7. Wide spacing of the teeth and prognathism

8. Cutis verticis gyrata (ie, furrows resembling gyri of the scalp) 

9. Small sessile and pedunculated fibromas (ie, skin tags)

10. Hypertrichosis

11. Oily skin (acne is not common)

12. Hyperpigmentation (40% of patients)

 

 

Complications may include,

1. Severe headache

2. Arthritis and carpel tunnel syndrome 

3. Enlarged heart 

4. Hypertension

5. Diabetes mellitus

6. Heart failure

7. Kidney Failure 

 

1.You may be recommended to get the levels of the following hormones/substances checked, 

a) Oral glucose level

b) GH levels 

c) IGF-1 levels

 

2.Imaging studies such as, 

a) MRI scan 

b) CT scan 

c) Radiography