Endothelial Dysfunction in Patients with Acromegaly

Abstract

It has been shown that Growth hormone (GH) and insulin like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) has important effects on heart and vascular system. However, little is known about endothelial function in acromegaly. The aim of this study was to determine endothelial function in patients with acromegaly. Endothelial function was evaluated in 10 patients with active acromegaly (eight men, two women) and in 11 age, sex and weight matched control (eight men, two women) using a flow mediated dilatation (FMD) technique in the brachial artery. In acromegalic patients mean FMD was 8.3±3.5 % and significantly lower than that of control group (p=.023). However, there were no significant correlations between GH, IGF-1 levels and percentage of FMD. These findings suggest that endothelial function impaired in patients with acromegaly.