Giantism

Description:

Giantism (or a macrosomia) develops at children with incomplete processes of ossification of a skeleton, meets at male teenagers more often, is defined at the age of 9-13 years and progresses throughout the entire period of physiological growth. At giantism the growth rate of the child and his indicators much more exceed anatomo-physiological norm and by the end of the pubertal period reach more than 1,9 m at women and men have 2 m at preservation of rather proportional constitution. Frequency of occurrence of giantism makes from 1 to 3 cases for 1000 the population.

Parents of the patients having this pathology, usually normal growth. Giantism should be differentiated with hereditary high-tallness.

Giantism symptoms:

The jump of increase in length of a body at giantism happens in 10-15 years. Patients differ in the high growth and rates of its increase, complain of bystry fatigue and weakness, dizzinesses, headaches, deterioration in sight, a joint pain and bones. Decrease in memory and working capacity leads to deterioration in progress at school. Giantism is characterized by hormonal disturbances, disorder of mental and sexual function (infantility). At women at giantism primary amenorrhea or the early termination of menstrual function, infertility develops, men have a hypogonadism. As other hormonal displays of giantism serve not diabetes mellitus, hypo - or a hyperthyroidism, a diabetes mellitus. Increase in a muscle strength, and then muscular weakness and an adynamy is noted at first.

Giantism reasons:

Giantism and acromegalia are two age variations of the same pathological processes: a hyperplasia and hyperfunction of cells of the hypophysis producing somatotropic hormone (growth hormone). Hypersecretion of a growth hormone can be observed at damages of a hypophysis as a result of gland tumors (hypophysis adenoma), intoxication, neuroinfections (encephalitis, meningitis, an encephalomeningitis), craniocereberal injuries.

Decrease in sensitivity of the epiphyseal cartilages providing growth of bones in length to influence of sex hormones serves frequent the giantism reason. As a result of it bones long keep ability of increase in length, even in the post-pubertal period.

Somatotropinum hypersecretion after closing of regions of growth of bones and completion of ossification of a skeleton leads to an acromegalia.

Treatment of Giantism:

The principles of treatment of giantism are similar to treatment of an acromegalia.

For normalization of level of a growth hormone at giantism somatostatin analogs, are applied to more bystry closing of regions of growth of bones - sex hormones.

Etiological treatment of giantism at adenomas of a hypophysis provides use of radiation therapy or their operational removal in combination with medicamentous support by dopamine agonists.

At eunuchoid type of giantism treatment is directed to elimination of sexual infantility, acceleration of ossification of a skeleton and the termination of its further growth. Treatment of partial giantism includes orthopedic correction by means of plastic surgeries.

The combined treatment of giantism applied by endocrinologists combines hormonal and radiation therapy and allows to achieve positive takes at considerable number of patients.