A new consensus update on the diagnosis and treatment of acromegaly emphasises aggressive treatment of comorbidities, including bone and joint disorders.

“Acromegaly is associated with very high, common comorbidities — mainly cardiovascular, hypertension, diabetes, sleep apnoea and rheumatological,” says senior author Professor Shlomo Melmed, of Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre in California, US.

“The cause of death in these patients is really due to exacerbations of those comorbidities,” he said.

“If growth hormone levels are uncontrolled and comorbidities progress, then survival may be diminished by 30%, in some studies.