The Encyclopedia of Endocrine Diseases and Disorders
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THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF lJ z > 0 z Endocrine < I ~ Diseases UJ< I and Disorders UJ ...J '-'- z 0 V'l 1- u '-'-< WILLIAM P ETIT. JR.. M.0. CHRISTINE ADAMEC THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ENDOCRINE DISEASES AND DISORDERS THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ENDOCRINE DISEASES AND DISORDERS William Petit Jr., M.D. Christine Adamec The Encyclopedia of Endocrine Diseases and Disorders Copyright © 2005 by William Petit Jr., M.D., and Christine Adamec All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher. For information contact: Facts On File, Inc. 132 West 31st Street New York NY 10001 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Petit, William. The encyclopedia of endocrine diseases and disorders / William Petit Jr., Christine Adamec. p. ; cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-8160-5135-6 (hc : alk. paper) 1. Endocrine glands—Diseases—Encyclopedias. [DNLM: 1. Endocrine Diseases—Encyclopedias—English. WK 13 P489ea 2005] I. Adamec, Christine A., 1949– II. Title. RC649.P48 2005 616.4’003—dc22 2004004916 Facts On File books are available at special discounts when purchased in bulk quantities for businesses, associations, institutions, or sales promotions. Please call our Special Sales Department in New York at (212) 967-8800 or (800) 322-8755. You can find Facts On File on the World Wide Web at http://www.factsonfile.com. Text and cover design by Cathy Rincon Printed in the United States of America VB FOF 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 This book is printed on acid-free paper. CONTENTS Foreword vii Acknowledgments ix Introduction xi Entries A–Z 1 Appendixes 247 Bibliography 289 Index 303 FOREWORD s an endocrinologist, I am very familiar with Other, less common endocrine diseases and dis- Athe importance of the endocrine glands to orders also have an impact. Some patients face can- human functioning. These glands work continu- cer of their endocrine glands, such as cancer of the ously to maintain the health of all individuals as we pancreas, thyroid, ovaries, testes, and the other move through each and every day of our lives. In organs that comprise the endocrine system. These fact, when one or more of the endocrine glands cancers are not as commonly diagnosed as are can- malfunction, the person’s entire system is often cers of the lung, breast, prostate, or colon. thrown into disarray. For example, if a person However, they are equally as devastating to those develops Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, an autoimmune who experience them. disorder that causes hypothyroidism, the person’s Some people develop very rare diseases of the once-normal thyroid levels will drop. He or she endocrine system. One such disease, gigantism, may become lethargic and show a variety of symp- causes extremely tall height due to a malfunction toms. These range from annoying to severe and of the pituitary gland. Other individuals have affect many activities of daily living. Due to lethar- unusually short stature, or dwarfism, often due to gy, the patient’s physical activity level will usually genetic mutations they have inherited from their decrease. Thus the patient may gain weight, even parents and sometimes from deficiencies of growth though he or she eats about the same amount of hormone. food as they had before becoming hypothyroid. In this volume, we have attempted to cover the The individual with hypothyroidism may also gamut of endocrine diseases and disorders, ranging appear apathetic and depressed, sometimes leading from the more common diseases, such as thyroid the patient to seek treatment for these symptoms disease and diabetes, to the rarer medical problems. rather than for the underlying cause. Our goal is to provide readers with a broad There are many other examples of endocrine overview of the endocrine system, illustrating how diseases that manifest profound effects on those the endocrine glands function when they work who live with these illnesses, especially if their normally as well as describing what happens when endocrine disorder is not identified and treated. For the endocrine glands malfunction and discussing example, diabetes mellitus has a major health what can be done in the case of the latter. impact on millions of people. Sadly, many people We must also point out that although doctors who have diabetes, and particularly Type 2 diabetes cannot cure all diseases and disorders, many ill- which usually can be treated with oral medica- nesses that were not treated years ago—because tions, are undiagnosed and untreated. These peo- the medical tools were not available at that time— ple risk suffering severe complications from their can now be treated by endocrinologists. For exam- long-term untreated illness. ple, if infertility is caused by an endocrine disorder, vii viii The Encyclopedia of Endocrine Diseases and Disorders the problem can often be identified and treated, obese) increased from one in 200 Americans in enabling an anxious couple to become transformed 1986 to one in 50 by the year 2000. into happy parents. In addition, over the same time period, the If the illness is potentially fatal, such as cancer, number of people who were obese (with a BMI of many treatments are available that can help 30 or greater) increased from one in 10 to one in patients resolve their cancer or extend their life for five Americans—another dramatic change. Clearly, many years. We doctors still do not have all the obesity is a major problem in the United States. It answers, of course, but we are learning more all is also one that needs to be addressed by both the time. Continuing research will enable us to dis- patients and their doctors. cover much more about endocrine diseases and Patients also bear other responsibilities in man- disorders and how to treat them more effectively. aging their health. For example, they should have In the meantime, we also know that patients annual checkups and should see their doctors more can take many actions to increase the probability of frequently if they are ill. Doctors are not mind their good health. For example, eating a healthy readers. They need to see their patients regularly. diet and exercising regularly will not only help Doctors also need to be given complete and many patients avert the scourge of obesity but will accurate information by their patients. When also significantly reduce their risk of developing patients withhold information from their doctors, diseases such as diabetes or hypertension. such as facts about smoking habits, intake of alco- Such healthy habits are very important. Recent hol, and use of alternative remedies, they may be studies have shown that the prevalence of both compromising their health. obesity and severe obesity has greatly increased. In summary, when doctors and patients work For example, a study reported in a 2003 issue of together in a healthy partnership, many endocrine Archives of Internal Medicine reported that the preva- diseases and disorders, as well as many other med- lence of people with a body mass index (BMI) of 40 ical problems, can often be successfully resolved or or greater and who were about 100 pounds or managed. more overweight (and thus considered severely —William Petit Jr., M.D. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS r. Petit and Christine Adamec would both like hypercalcemia during his years at the Clinical Dto thank the following individuals: Marie Research Center at Yale University, involved with Mercer, reference librarian at the DeGroodt Public the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial Library in Palm Bay, Florida, for her assistance in (DCCT). He would also like to thank the nurses of locating hard-to-find journal articles and books. In Hunter 5. addition, they would like to thank Mary Jordan, Dr. Petit would also like to thank the following: interlibrary loan librarian at the Central Library his team members in his offices, including Doreen Facility in Cocoa, Florida, for her research assis- Rackliffe, PA-C, Doreen Akehurst, Milagros Cruz, tance. Thanks also to Stuart Moss, librarian at the Cheryl Dunphy, Mona Huggard, and Michelle Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research in Rodriguez; his team members at the Joslin Diabetes Orangeburg, New York, for helping to locate docu- Center at New Britain General Hospital, including ments that were difficult to find. Mary Armetta, Sue Bennett, Lynne Blais, Linda Dr. Petit would like to thank his wife, Jennifer Ciarcia, Carole Demarest, Lynn Diaz, Tracy Dube, Hawke-Petit, and his daughters, Hayley Elizabeth Cindy Edwards, Jen Kostak, Linda Krikawa, Marc and Michaela Rose, for allowing him to monopo- Levesque, Karen McAvoy, Terri McInnis, Pat lize the computer to trade electronic mails and files O’Connell, Denise Otero, Robin Romero, Kate with his coauthor. He would like to thank his coau- Simoneau, Ursula Szczepanski, and Sue Zailskas; thor, Mrs. Adamec, for her unwavering support and his physician colleagues at New Britain and hard work and for continuing to push him as General Hospital in New Britain, Connecticut, he continued his usual clinical and speaking duties, including Jim Bernene, M.D., Latha Dulipsingh, leaving only nights and weekends to write. M.D., Joe Khawaja, M.D., Tom Lane, M.D., Ray Dr. Petit would also like to thank all his patients LeFranc, M.D., Joe Rosenblatt, M.D., and Mubashir over the years who continue to teach him clinical Shah, M.D. endocrinology. These include, among many others, Christine Adamec would like to thank her hus- his first patient with diabetes mellitus and pancre- band, John Adamec, for his support and patience atic cancer when Dr. Petit was a third-year student; throughout the project. a patient in his clinic in Rochester, New York, with Special thanks to James Chambers, editor in a very rare combination of empty sella syndrome chief, Arts & Humanities, Facts On File, Inc., for his and isolated adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) support of this project.