gigantism

[jī′gan‚tiz·əm]

(medicine)

Abnormal largeness of the body due to hypersecretion of growth hormone.

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Gigantism

excessive growth in humans. A height exceeding 190 cm may acquire a pathological character. Giants over 200 cm tall are rarely encountered; the tallest human described in the literature was 320 cm tall. Gigantism is observed more often in males, is usually manifested at nine-ten years of age or during the period of sexual maturation, and continues during the physiological growth of the body. The causes of gigantism are not known; it is presumed that it is connected with intensified function of the anterior pituitary gland, which produces the growth hormone. Giants of pathological height experience poor health and rarely live to old age. They are often psychologically infantile, and their sex drive is absent or decreased. Externally, there is elongation of the extremities, especially the lower ones; the head appears unusually small. There exists partial gigantism, which is characterized by the enlargement of part (for example, the feet) or half of the body. Treatment includes X-ray and hormone therapy, sometimes surgery.

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References in periodicals archive

Keiran Halliday, 19, who has gigantism, with his mum Caroline

Teen Keiran's battle to cope with gigantism; Keiran Halliday had a rare pituitary tumour removed last year and has not stopped growing since. His mum Caroline tells Rachel Mainwaring how the 19-year-old is battling a condition called gigantism

This new study questions some of the current theories about the evolution of climate and life, including the causes for the gigantism of dinosaurs.

Dinosaurs Lived in Low-Oxygen World, Amber Shows

This slim, well-illustrated text, details the life of Anna Swan, a Nova Scotia woman who lived in the mid-to-late-eighteen hundreds, and most likely suffered from gigantism. It is a straight-forward biography of Swan's life, geared towards young readers.

Anne Renaud. The Extraordinary Life of Anna Swan

Peter Mayhew was born with a condition known as gigantism, which causes excessive growth.

'Chewbacca' actor has double knee surgery

These images show disproportionate overgrowth of fat and bone tissue in the left medial forefoot and midfoot consistent with focal gigantism. The overgrowth is most prominent in the second digit and also involves the first and third digits.

A child with progressive enlargement of the left foot

Yet, this apparent paradox may explain the evolutionary advantage of gigantism in trees."

Is it a tree or a plant?--It's eucalyptus

Perhaps it is his sheer gigantism - this was the largest orchestra Opera North have ever fielded in Huddersfield - or perhaps it is the required feats of virtuosity, which were all performed excellently here.

Electrified by orchestral works of despair; Review TITLE: Mahler Symphony No. 6, Orchestra of Opera North VENUE: Huddersfield Town Hall BY: CHRIS ROBINS

Gary, who suffers from the rare disease of gigantism Acromegaly, is also a well-known sculptor and has had work exhibited nationally.

Duchess grapples with Jaws the artist; Bond villain impersonator turns up at castle with Percy Lion model for gardens

Jinny died of gigantism at her Jiggins Lane home and the four schoolboys tasked with carrying her coffin remarked how light it seemed.

TAKE THE HIGH ROAD; Short city street named after world's tallest woman premier league

Hypersecretion leads to gigantism in the young and to acromegaly in the adults, caused usually by a pituitary adenoma.

Hormones and their clinical consideration in orthodontics

As von Hoffman indicates, Alinsky worried about "gigantism," whether involving government, big business, or labor unions, casting his lot with "democratic organizations" against massive bureaucracies (151).

Radical: A Portrait of Saul Alinsky

The local Xin'an Evening News did not give the cause of death but said in a report that Yao suffered from gigantism, with a tumor on her pituitary gland disrupting her levels of growth hormone.

Oldest woman dies in US, aged 116