What neurologic disorders are associated with excess growth hormone?
Sustained excessive growth hormone (GH) appears to directly produce myopathy.
GH-induced changes in the myotubule include impaired glycolytic carbohydrate metabolism, increased fatty acid oxidation, and increased protein synthesis with reduced protein degradation.
The more highly oxidative type I and type IIa muscle fibers are typically most affected by GH.
Myotubule hypertrophy from abnormal protein synthesis produces weakness in the face of increased muscle size.
Although central sleep apnea may also be caused directly by excessive GH production, the obstructive sleep apnea, basilar impression, myelopathy, and compressive neuropathies reported in this disease are all indirect effects of bony, ligamentous, and soft-tissue hyperplasia with secondary compression of neural tissue.
