Background: Acromegaly is caused by the long-term excessive secretion of growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1). It can cause excessive hyperplasia of bone, cartilage, and soft tissue.
Case presentation: A 50-year-old woman had a history of joint pain and swelling for more than 1 year. She visited a local primary care clinic, but her illness was not diagnosed by a primary care physician. After relevant examination in our hospital, we excluded inflammatory arthritis such as rheumatoid arthritis, immune disease-related arthritis, and infectious arthritis, and considered osteoarthritis or endocrine-metabolic arthritis. When we examined her again, we found that her fingers and toes were enlarged. She was diagnosed with acromegaly after IGF-1 test, and pituitary magnetic resonance imaging. Her joint symptoms were significantly relieved and her prognosis was good after surgery in another hospital.
Conclusions: Acromegaly is a complex and rare disease, which is difficult to diagnose. When a patient presents with arthralgia, it is easily misdiagnosed as a rheumatic disease, and the diagnosis and treatment are delayed.
Keywords: acromegaly; case report; diagnosis; joint pain.
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