[Studies on the abnormal response of pituitary somatotropin to dopaminergic drugs in patients with acromegaly]

Abstract

This article studies the effects of dopaminergic drugs on the pituitary GH secreting adenoma. The secretion of GH was enhanced and suppressed in 6 normal adults and 5 acromegalic patients respectively after intravenous infusion of dopamine and oral ingestion of L-dopa. Simultaneous administration of L-dopa and carbidopa (a drug that inhibits the conversion of L-dopa to dopamine in peripheral tissue) showed no suppressive or stimulatory effect on the secretion of GH in acromegaly. This result indicates that an abnormality in the GH secreting cell may be the cause of the different responses of GH to dopaminergic drugs in acromegaly.