Aberrations in carbohydrate metabolism in patients with diagnosed acromegaly, hospitalized in the Endocrinology and Diabetology Department of Collegium Medicum

Introduction: The incidence rate of acromegaly is 50 to70 persons per one million people. It occurs twice as often in women than in men, especially in middle age. In the course of the disease, insulin resistance develops, which is connected with the hypersecretion of somatotropin. Type 2 diabetes mellitus occurs more frequently in patients with acromegaly than in the rest of the population. It is diagnosed in 13–56% of acromegaly sufferers; impaired glucose tolerance occurs in 16–46% of examined patients with acromegaly. The aim of this study is to estimate disturbances of glycaemia in patients with diagnosed acromegaly, hospitalized in the Endocrinology and Diabetology Department of Collegium Medicum University of Nicolaus Copernicus in Bydgoszcz in the years 2001–2009. Material and methods: The participants were a group of 70 patients with acromegaly diagnosed on the basis of clinical symptoms, high levels of somatotropin, and MRI imaging of the pituitary gland. Results: Type 2 diabetes was diagnosed in 19 patients (27%); there were 11 cases (15%) of diagnosis of impaired fasting glycaemia (IFG) and imapired glucose tolerance (IGT) combined. Normoglycaemia was recognized in 57% of participants (40 patients). The average age of participants with concomitant type 2 diabetes was 56.1 years, whereas the average age of those without carbohydrate metabolism disturbances was 47.1 years. Conclusions: In patients with acromegaly, the incidence rate of type 2 diabetes is 3–4-times higher than in the rest of the population and increases with age, especially after the age of 60. (Pol J Endocrinol 2010; 61 (3): 260–263)