Increased prevalence of regurgitant valvular heart disease in acromegaly

Cardiac involvement is common in acromegaly, but the prevalence of valvular abnormalities in patients with acromegaly has not been documented and is the topic of this study. In a prospective study design, 40 consecutive patients with acromegaly and 120 control subjects (matched for age, sex, hypertension, and left ventricular systolic function) were studied. All patients and controls were evaluated using conventional two-dimensional and Doppler echocardiography. Significant valve disease was more prevalent in acromegalics compared with controls (22% vs. 6.7%, respectively; P = 0.005). Aortic valve regurgitation (≥trace severity) was present in 30% of patients vs. 7% of controls (P < 0.001), and mitral regurgitation (≥moderate severity) was absent in controls but present in 5% of acromegalics (P = 0.014 vs. controls). Binary logistic regression analysis showed a significant impact only for disease duration on valvular disease, with an odds ratio of 1.19 (95% confidence interval, 1.028–1.376; P = 0.019). Ac...