Volumetric, hemodynamic, and excretory characteristics of the liver in acromegaly.

Abstract

Comprehensive autopsy studies (1, 2) have disclosed that enlargement of the viscera, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, pancreas, adrenals, and particularly the liver, is a prominent and consistent feature of acromegaly. The detailed structural changes responsible for visceromegaly in patients with this disease are poorly understood. Studies of the functional alterations of the hypertrophied organs are few and have been focused almost exclusively on the kidneys. Increased renal plasma flow, glomerular filtration rate, and proximal tu- bular functions have been demonstrated (3-5). It seemed reasonable, therefore, to expect that blood flow and excretory function of the liver might also be augmented.