Endocrine Abstracts

Acromegaly is a rare endocrine disorder, caused by hypersecretion of growth hormone. Cardiovascular and metabolic complications reduce life expectancy. Early carbohydrate metabolism disorders and diabetes mellitus are frequently associated with acromegaly.

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the glycemic profile and cardiovascular complications in acromegaly.

Methods: We performed a retrospective study. We included 20 patients diagnosed with acromegaly and followed up in a tertiary endocrinology center. Patients who had not previously been diagnosed with diabetes underwent an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) - in the fasting state, and 30, 60, 90 and 120 min after oral administration of 75 g glucose, blood was collected for the simultaneous measurement of plasma levels of GH and glucose. Also the patients underwent an extensive evaluation which included the assessment of the cardiovascular risk.

Results: The average age was 48 years old, with a sex ratio (M/F) 0.5. 35% patients were diagnosed with diabetes mellitus and 30% had arterial hypertension. The duration of the disease was on average 12.4 years. % of the patients had active disease and were under medical therapy. 35% of the patients were diagnosed with acromegalic cardiomyopathy and 15% had major cardiovascular events. A gradual increase of diabetes prevalence was observed with age.

Conclusions: In this study we have observed a high prevalence of diabetes mellitus in patients with acromegaly. The patients had a long duration of the disease. A better glycemic control is achieved when the underlying endocrine disorder is treated.