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Gigantism

Published on Nov 18, 2015

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PRESENTATION OUTLINE

GIGANTISM

DREW NASSOIY AND JOSH BELL

WHAT IS IT?

  • Giganticism is a condition described by excessive growth and height significantly above average.
  • This excessive growth makes the child extremely large for their age.
  • Some symptoms are delayed puberty, double vision, increased sweating, weakness.
  • The most common cause is a noncancerous tumor of the pituitary gland.
  • A CT or MRI scan of the head will show the pituitary tumor if you have Giganticism.

HOW COMMON IS IT?

  • Giganticsm is a vey rare condition that only occurs in children.
  • About 100 cases have been reported in the United States.
  • It has been reported to occure at a female-to-male ration of 1:2.

HOW DOES SOMEONE GET IT?

  • Gigantism takes place when the pituitary gland grows a tumor.
  • It then begins to produce a very large amount of growth hormone
  • Due to the excessive amount of growth hormone results in excesssive growth.

WHAT IS GOING WRONG?

  • The metabolic rate is usually 20% above normal.
  • Usually hyperglycemia is present, and eventually leads to diabetes.
  • If the pituitary becomes overactive after growth is complete, its called Acromegaly.
  • Your organs stay the same size as your body size increases, putting more strain on your organs.

CAN IT BE TREATED?

  • The most effective way is to remove the pituitary tumor through surgery.
  • If the tumor is not possible to remove, the patient must resort to medication.
  • Some drugs such as Somatostain and Octeroide reduce the release of growth hormone.
  • You can also have radiation therapy done, however, it takes a long time to control.
  • Doctors will also prescribe Dopamine to reduce the hormone level.

HOW DOES IT AFFECT YOUR FAMILY?

  • In the long run, it involves alot of medical follow-ups to monitor the hormones.
  • You must be sure the tumor doesn't grow larger and screening for other problems is required.
  • Everyday activities such as clothes shopping, riding in cars, shoe shopping is more difficult.
  • The life expectancy is lower than normal, but cannot be predicted and varies between people.

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