THE OBESITY AND ENERGY EXCHANGE IN A VERIFIED CASE OF PITUITARY BASOPHILISM

Abstract

Obesity is frequently observed in patients who have lesions of the hypophysis. The adiposity associated with Fröhlich's syndrome is well known. Cushing¹ recently described a clinical syndrome resulting from basophil adenoma of the pituitary gland. One of the features of this syndrome is adiposity, which is said to be confined characteristically to the face, neck, thorax and abdomen, sparing the extremities. The abdomen is usually protuberant and often pendulous. The feeling is prevalent that the obesity associated with dyspituitarism results from some unusual metabolic disturbance, which in a mysterious way causes an increased synthesis and deposition of body fat. The significance of hypercholesteremia, commonly present in cases of pituitary basophilism, has been variously interpreted. Kraus² suggested that a disturbance of fat metabolism with an associated hypercholesteremia may be the fundamental abnormality in Cushing's disease and that as a result of this metabolic disturbance lesions develop in the adenohypophysis (excess basophilia