Q.Discuss the following endocrine disorders with reference to their cause and their effect on the body: cretinism, simple goitre, exophthalmic goitre and diabetes mellitus.
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Start your 14-day free trial to unlock the full solution →Cretinism results from a deficiency of thyroid hormone specifically during infancy and early childhood, a period when adequate thyroid hormone is essential for normal nervous system development as well as skeletal growth; the result is severely stunted physical growth combined with impaired mental development, a dual effect that distinguishes it from purely skeletal growth disorders like dwarfism.
Simple (iodine-deficiency) goitre arises when insufficient dietary iodine limits the thyroid's ability to synthesise T3/T4. Falling thyroid hormone removes the normal negative-feedback restraint on pituitary TSH secretion, so persistently elevated TSH continuously over-stimulates the iodine-starved gland, causing it to enlarge visibly in the neck even though its hormone output stays low -- a hypothyroid condition despite the visible enlargement.
Exophthalmic goitre (Graves' disease) is, by contrast, an autoimmune hyperthyroid condition: antibodies mimic TSH's action, chronically overstimulating the thyroid to secrete excess T3/T4. This produces an enlarged, overactive thyroid, a raised metabolic rate, weight loss despite normal appetite, and, characteristically, protrusion of the eyeballs (exophthalmos) from swelling of the tissue behind the eyes. …
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