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Hypertrophy refers to the enlargement of various areas of the body, including muscles, skin, appendages, or organs, caused by cell enlargement. While muscle enlargement can be positive, most hypertrophic conditions can be medically problematic and cause minor to significant problems. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, thyroid gland enlargement, tonsils and adenoids, prostate gland hypertrophy, and skin hypertrophy are some examples.
Hypertrophic is a medical term which translates to enlargement and hypertrophy would refer to the enlargement of various areas of the body; these areas could include muscles, skin, appendages, or organs. In this condition, at the most basic level, cell enlargement occurs. This should be considered distinct from growth through cells dividing and creating new cells, which is often called hyperplasia. The causes of hypertrophic growth vary depending on where the growth occurs.
Those seeking to understand this condition must realize that it comes in many forms, many of which are medically problematic. While it is not accurate to say that all forms of hypertrophy are bad, most of them can be medically significant. They can cause minor to significant problems for the person suffering from a hypertrophic condition.
Positive and negative instances
A quick web search of the term hypertrophy is likely to reveal opposing positive and negative articles on the subject. For example, when articles discuss muscle building, they might be on bodybuilding sites. In this case, it is typically desirable to create hypertrophy or bigger muscles, and there are many suggestions on how to do this by lifting weights, as well as many hormonal and nutritional products on the market that promise to increase muscle. However, while muscle enlargement can be a positive example of hypertrophic enlargement, especially for those interested in bodybuilding, in most cases hypertrophy of other parts of the body is essentially bad and potentially dangerous.
Effects on the heart
When the cells of the heart get larger, as they often do when heart disease is present, the whole heart works less efficiently. Some people suffer from conditions such as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, which includes significant enlargement of the heart muscle. Mostly genetic or caused by high blood pressure, this dangerous condition reduces the size of the heart chambers, reducing blood flow, and can sometimes require transplantation or removal of part of the heart tissue to make the heart work better.
Effects on organs and glands
There are many organs and glands that can become overgrown, for example, the thyroid gland can become overgrown due to the thyroid gland releasing too many hormones. This causes the thyroid to reduce the production of thyroid hormone, which may require medication or removal of the thyroid. Tonsils and adenoids, when they become too large due to bacteria or viruses, could be called hypertrophied. Also, as many men age, they may suffer from prostate enlargement due to infection, which can be referred to as prostate gland hypertrophy.
More examples
Other areas of the body can become hypertrophied. Skin cells can enlarge, especially when there has been an injury or stretch to the skin, and some scars are basically the result of skin hypertrophy, which causes their unusual appearance. Some women experience extreme breast enlargement, especially during pregnancy or as they hit puberty; not only does this hypertrophy cause discomfort, it can also result in hypertrophic scarring of the skin with evidence of long-lasting stretch marks.
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