What happens to an excess of growth hormone?

The height of human beings will only change significantly during the period of physical development. When we become adults, we will no longer grow taller, and a height of 10 centimeters has become the dream of many adults.

But there is a very strange example, this is only one documented in the history of medicine. It involves a person. In his life, he was both a dwarf and a giant.

His name is Adam Rainer. He was born in Graz, Austria in 1899. His parents are of medium build, but he is unfortunately not tall.

When World War I broke out (1914), 15-year-old Reina tried to join the army, but he was only 4 feet 6.3 inches (equivalent to 1.3 meters), and was considered too short and weak to be a soldier.

A year later, Reina tried again. Although he had grown a full 2 ​​inches (0.05), the army rejected him again because of his height.

Finally, 19-year-old Renner was judged to be a dwarf because everyone thought he had stopped growing. At this time, he was only 4 feet 8.3 inches (1.43 meters), nearly 2 inches lower than the standard height (4 feet 10 inches) .

Although he was short, medical reports at the time showed that his hands and feet were abnormally larger than his height. When he first joined the army, the size of the shoes he wore was 10 in the United States (equivalent to 44 in China, 27.5 cm).

Three years later, the size of his feet doubled to 20 yards in the United States, reaching an astonishing 37.5 centimeters. This shoe size is about the size of the shoes worn by American basketball player Shaquille O’Neal, but his height is relatively unchanged. change.

However, because of a tumor he began to “counterattack” and realized what many people dreamed of, his height began to grow crazy.

From the age of 21, in the next 10 years, his height has grown from less than 4 feet 10 inches to an astonishing 7 feet 1 inch (2.16 meters). During this period, Reina also began to have severe spine curvature.

The science behind this crazy growth

From 1930 to 1931, Dr. A. Mandl and F. Windholz examined Reina and found that he had a disease called acromegaly.

Reina’s acromegaly was caused by a tumor on his pituitary gland, which caused an excess of growth hormone in his body.

Growth hormone is a peptide hormone secreted by the adenohypophysis. The main physiological role of the human body is to promote the synthesis of protein and cartilage. Lack of childhood will lead to dwarfism, and excess will lead to gigantism.

After adulthood, if excess growth hormone is likely to cause acromegaly, Reiner is not only short in stature but has large hands and feet; he also has a prominent forehead and chin, thick lips covering wide teeth, these are all It is a typical manifestation of acromegaly.

You can see the effect of this syndrome on his facial features as he ages.

Renner kept growing, but unfortunately, he lacked the musculoskeletal system to support his body, so his spine began to bend and his joints were not working properly.

Considering that the tumor has been growing for more than ten years, the two doctors believe that the chance of success is very small, but they still decided to perform the operation.

A few months after the operation, when the doctor again measured Reina’s height, they found that although Reina’s height did not change significantly, the spine flexion became more severe, which indicated that he was still growing, but at a slower rate.

At last

Renner’s health continued to deteriorate, his right eye began to be blind, and his left ear also began to lose hearing. Over time, his spinal deformity became more severe and eventually he was bedridden.

He died at the age of 51 and was 7 feet 8 inches (2.34 meters) tall. He was the only person in history considered to be both a dwarf and a giant.

Well, no matter who he is, he is definitely a witness to the miracle of human body!