The Biochemical Diagnosis of Acromegaly

Abstract

Background: The diagnosis of acromegaly still poses a clinical challenge, and prolonged diagnostic delay is common. The most important assays for the biochemical diagnosis and management of acromegaly are growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1). Objective: Discuss the role of IGF-1, basal serum GH, and nadir GH after oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) for the diagnosis, management, and treatment of patients with acromegaly. Methods: We performed a narrative review of the published data on the biochemical diagnosis and monitoring of acromegaly. An English-language search for relevant studies was conducted on PubMed from inception to 1 January 2021. The reference lists of relevant studies were also reviewed. Results: Serum IGF-1 levels, basal GH values, and nadir GH after OGTT play a major role in the diagnosis, management, and treatment of patients with acromegaly. Measurement of IGF-1 levels is the key factor in the diagnosis and monitoring of acromegaly, but basal and nadir GH following OGTT are also important. However, several factors may significantly influence the concentrations of these hormones, including assay methods, physiologic and pathologic factors. In some cases, discordant GH and IGF-1 levels may be challenging and usually requires additional data and monitoring. Conclusion: New GH and IGF-1 standards are much more precise and provide more accurate tools to diagnose and monitor patients with acromegaly. However, all these biochemical tools have their limitations, and these should be taken under consideration, along with the history, clinical features and imaging studies, when assessing patients for acromegaly.