Case Study: Acromegaly

                                                                Case Study: Acromegaly

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                                                                         Case Study: Acromegaly

                                    The Type of Health Condition

            Given the facts in the case study, it is apparent that Jake (the patient) is suffering from a condition known as acromegaly. The disease is a hormonal disorder which develops when an individual’s pituitary gland generates excessive growth hormones (GH) (Hannah-Shmouni, Travelling, & Strata is, 2016). Acromegaly is most frequently detected amid the middle-aged adults (precisely where Jake’s age bracket fits) even though the disease’s symptoms can emerge at any age. Whenever the illness appears, the patient’s bones enlarge in size including those of the face, feet as well as hands. These symptoms perfectly match Jake’s description of his worries which makes it appropriate to conclude that he is suffering from acromegaly. Besides, the existence of excessive growth hormones among children can lead to a health condition known as Gigantism, hence one can disqualify the possibility that Jake is suffering from Gigantism as he is a middle-aged adult and not a kid.

                                                      Diagnosis

            Generally, the diagnosis of acromegaly encompasses a multiplicity of factors such as confirming the presence and size of a tumor via use of imaging tests, examining levels of particular hormones within the blood (Melded, 2009). Additionally, the diagnosis involves identification of the physical changes on the patient’s body in the same way that Jake had done. Two crucial blood tests are usually done to diagnose acromegaly, and these include the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) as well as the insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1) (Melded, 2009). The clinical experts cannot just depend upon the level of growth hormone within the patient’s body since the level differs substantially within one day (this is typical even for persons without this illness). This denotes that a medical practitioner could randomly examine the level of growth hormone and find a normal level in a patient suffering from acromegaly. Moreover, as a result of the variation in the growth hormones, the medical practitioner could test the level of growth hormones in a person without acromegaly and detect levels far beyond the normal range (Melded, 2009). For this reason, the medical experts rely on OGTT and IGF-1 to assist them in the diagnosis of acromegaly. 

                              Comparison and Contrast of Gigantism and Acromegaly.

            Both gigantism and acromegaly are associated with an adenoma or a benign tumor within the pituitary gland (Gustine et al., 2014). The tumor causes increased growth hormone production, leading to several symptoms such as excessive large hands and feet as well as thick fingers amongst middle-aged adults and abnormal height in children (Gustine et al., 2014).

            Acromegaly is a health condition that affects explicitly adults, usually amid the age bracket of thirty to fifty (Gustine et al., 2014). Gigantism, on the other hand, affects children with a similarly increased growth hormone however in a manner that can delay puberty together with causing the excessive and abnormal physical growth (Gustine et al., 2014). The symptoms of these two illnesses are not instantly apparent, especially for the children whose family have tall persons, therefore, early diagnosis and identification is fundamental for preventing permanent excess growth (Gustine et al., 2014). Besides, both acromegaly and gigantism can be treated through surgical intervention. Furthermore, drug therapy can be used to lower the levels of growth hormones, and the most effective drugs are the ones are in the form of somatostatin (a hormone which usually blocks the production as well as secretion of the growth hormone) (Gustine et al., 2014).

                                                                      Case Study: Diabetes

            This section will delve into the pathophysiology of one of endocrines disease-diabetes mellitus- also the signs, symptoms, treatment, and diagnosis of type 1 diabetes will be covered.

                                                                            Pathophysiology

            Type 1 Diabetes is associated with the autoimmune destruction of the insulin generating cells within the pancreases by CD8+ and CD4+ T macrophages and cells infiltrating the islets (Atkinson, Eisenbarth, & Michels, 2014). The autoimmune damaging of pancreatic β-cells results in the inadequacy of the insulin emission that leads to the metabolic restructure related to type 1 diabetes (Atkinson et al., 2014).    

                                                                    Signs and Symptoms

            The type one diabetes symptoms and signs can emerge relatively instantaneously and might entail:

•    Increased thirst

•    Recurrent urination

•    Great hunger

•    Unplanned weight loss

•    Irritability as well as other mood changes

•    Weakness and fatigue

•    Blurry vision

                                                                 Diagnosis and Treatment

            In spite of the massive body of research regarding this illness, there exists no cure for type 1 diabetes (Atkinson et al., 2014). However, the treatment of the disease concentrates on the management of the level of blood sugar with insulin, diet as well as lifestyle to mitigate further complications (Atkinson et al., 2014). Some of the activities involved in the diagnosis and treatment of type 1 diabetes include:

• Fasting plasma glucose test-there needs to be an 8 hours fasting prior to taking this examination. Blood glucose of more than 126 milligrams per deciliter on two test and above completed in different days act as the confirmation for diagnosis of type 1 diabetes (Atkinson et al., 2014).
• Random plasma check-this is the simplest screening which doesn’t need fasting prior to taking the test.

                                                                         References

Atkinson, M. A., Eisenbarth, G. S., & Michels, A. W. (2014). Type 1 diabetes. The Lancet, 383(9911), 69-82.

Gustine, A., Chanson, P., Kleinberg, D., Bronstein, M. D., Clemmons, D. R., Klibanski, A., & Casanueva, F. F. (2014). Expert consensus document: a consensus on the medical treatment of acromegaly. Nature Reviews Endocrinology, 10(4), 243.

Hannah-Shmouni, F., Travelling, G., & Strata is, C. A. (2016). Genetics of gigantism and acromegaly. Growth Hormone & IGF Research, 30, 37-41.

Melded, S. (2009). Acromegaly pathogenesis and treatment. The Journal of clinical investigation, 119(11), 3189-3202.