Endocrinology Discussion

Running head: ENDOCRINOLOGY DISCUSSION
ENDOCRINOLOGY DISCUSSION
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1ENDOCRINOLOGY DISCUSSION
Introduction:
The endocrine system consists of glands called the Endocrine glands that secretes
hormones into the blood stream directly. The endocrine glands consist of various different
types of glands. One of the important glands from the endocrine system is the pituitary gland.
The pituitary gland is located within a structure called sella turcica in the base of the brain.
The pituitary gland is responsible of controlling most of the endocrine gland’s function.
Therefore, it is also known as the Master gland (Tziaferi & Dattani, 2018).
The Pituitary gland’s function, hormones produced and the function of the
hormones in the body:
Function of the gland:
The pituitary gland wheels the glands such as adrenal, thyroid, testicles and ovaries.
The pituitary gland receives signal from the hypothalamus and it controls the secretion of the
amount of hormones released (Campbell, 2016).
Hormones produced and their actions in the body:
The pituitary gland comprises of two portions, the anterior pituitary and the posterior
pituitary and the secretion of the hormones are divided as follows:
Anterior pituitary:
 Stimulating growth hormones for the bones and muscles
 Production of an antidiuretic hormone called Vasopressin, for kidney
 Stimulation of prolactin in mammary gland for milk production
 Creating Enkephalins in brain that helps in inhibiting pain sensations
 Endorphins secretion that regulates the immune system

2ENDOCRINOLOGY DISCUSSION
 Production of thyroid stimulating hormones that regulates the secretion of
thyroid hormones from the thyroid gland.
Posterior pituitary:
 Creating oxytocin for uterus in order to stimulate contraction that leads to birth
 Secretion of skin darkening hormone called Beta-melanocyte.
Causes and clinical manifestations of gland hyper-function:
Hyperpituitarism:
The overactive pituitary gland leads to hyperpituitarism. In such condition, the pituitary
gland starts secreting immoderate amount of hormones which may be due to noncancerous-
tumor or hypothalamus dysfunction (Tziaferi & Dattani, 2018).
An overactive pituitary gland can lead to several types of disorders which includes:
 Acromegaly: This results in secretion of growth hormones in adults in excessive
amounts. It results in:
 Growth of hands and feet.
 The facial structure changes, the lips, nose, jaw and other part of the face
gets bigger than their usual size.
 The skin turns oily, thick and coarse
 Increase in the risk of high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer and heart
attack.
 Irregular period for women and erectile dysfunction for men.

3ENDOCRINOLOGY DISCUSSION
 Prolactinoma: The disorder takes place due over production od prolactin.
Prolactinoma results in abnormal reproductive functions women and men. the
excessive production od prolactin can cause:
 Tenderness of the breast and starts milk production in a woman who is not
pregnant.
 Irregular period, infertility
 Erectile dysfunction in men, low fertility and loss of energy
 Hyperthyroidism: Overproduction of thyroid stimulating hormones leading to
hyperthyroidism (Yeung & Tahir, 2017). It includes symptoms such as:
 Nervousness
 Loss in weight
 Weakness in muscles
 Irregular or rapid heartbeat
Causes and clinical manifestations of gland hypo-function:
Hypopituitarism:
Hypopituitarism is a condition where the pituitary gland flops to yield hormones or it
doesn’t produce sufficient hormones as per their requirement. It can be a result of inherited
disorder or due to the presence of tumor in the pituitary gland (|Romero, Jones & Radovick,
2016).
There are various other causes of hypothyroidism, such as:
 Injuries in head
 Tumor in the brain
 Surgery
 Treatment with radiations