ACROMEGALY AND PITUITARY-TUMORS - EARLY ANATOMOCLINICAL OBSERVATIONS

The elucidation of pituitary physiopathology has been a major challeng e for physicians since early ages. Due to the unawareness of the endoc rine system, acromegaly, the most striking pituitary disorder, was com monly regarded as an intrinsic bone disease. Andrea Verga and Vincenzo Brigidi, Italian authors of the 19th century, reported the first macr oscopic and microscopic descriptions of pituitary adenomas in acromega lic patients. Although far from providing a correct pathogenetic inter pretation of the disease, they opened the way to forthcoming observati ons and discoveries. A short history of acromegaly and pituitary physi opathology is drawn.