Acromegaly and Sleep Disordered Breathing

Acromegaly is the result of oversecretion of growth hormone and IGF-1 and the disease can affect several organ systems. Sleep Disordered Breathing (SDB) is a frequent disease in acromegaly patients. The mechanism of SDB is somewhat different in acromegaly patients than SDB in normal population. Although central apneas can be seen, obstructive apneas according to structural changes complicate the course of the disease. Treatment of SDB is as important as the treatment of acromegaly. In this review, we searched the medical literature and summarized the etiology, pathogenesis, mechanism of SDB development and treatment of SDB in acromegaly patients.