The key difference between pituitary and thyroid dwarfism is that pituitary dwarfism is a medical condition occurring due to a deficiency of growth hormones, while thyroid dwarfism is a medical condition occurring due to a deficiency of thyroid hormones.
Dwarfism is a medical condition that causes short stature. It can be a result of genetic or existing medical conditions. The causes of dwarfism may include genetic (achondroplasia and Turner syndrome), growth hormone deficiency (pituitary dwarfism), deficiencies in other hormones, and poor nutrition. Therefore, pituitary and thyroid dwarfism are two different types of dwarfism.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Pituitary Dwarfism
3. What is Thyroid Dwarfism
4. Similarities – Pituitary and Thyroid Dwarfism
5. Pituitary vs Thyroid Dwarfism in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Pituitary vs Thyroid Dwarfism
What is Pituitary Dwarfism?
Pituitary dwarfism is also known as growth hormone deficiency. It is a medical condition due to insufficient amounts of growth hormone (GH) made from the pituitary gland. Pituitary dwarfism is mainly a congenital condition. However, it can also develop later in life. Children with pituitary dwarfism are abnormally short in stature with normal body proportions. The other symptom of this condition may include slow growth or absence of growth, absent or delayed sexual development during puberty, headaches, increased urination or amount of urine, excessive thirst, and facial abnormalities. Moreover, pituitary dwarfism can be due to genetic defects, severe brain injury, being born without a pituitary gland, and in some cases, idiopathy.
Pituitary dwarfism can be diagnosed through medical history, physical examination (measuring height, weight, arms and leg lengths), blood tests to measure the levels of growth hormone and other hormones in the body, and imaging tests, including X-ray and MRI. Furthermore, treatment options for pituitary dwarfism may include the use of synthetic growth hormone under the supervision of a pediatric endocrinologist.
What is Thyroid Dwarfism?
Thyroid dwarfism is a medical condition that is due to insufficient amounts of thyroid hormone in the human body. This condition is also called congenital hypothyroidism. The main symptoms of this condition include problems in neurological function, stunted growth, and physical deformities. The other notable signs and symptoms of thyroid dwarfism may include lack of weight gain, fatigue, poor feeding, thickened facial features, abnormal bone growth, mental retardation, very little crying, excessive sleep, constipation, jaundice, floppiness, hoarse voice, unusual large tongue, umbilical hernia, cool, dry skin, pale skin, myxedema, and goiter.
Thyroid dwarfism can occur by a missing or poorly formed thyroid gland, a genetic defect that affects thyroid hormone production, too little iodine in the diet of the mother, radioactive iodine or antithyroid treatment for thyroid cancer, and the use of other medicines that disrupts thyroid hormone production (antithyroid drugs, sulfonamides, or lithium).
Thyroid dwarfism can be diagnosed through medical history, physical examination, blood tests for thyroid hormones (T3 and T4), and genetic testing. Furthermore, treatment options for thyroid dwarfism may include the administration of thyroid hormone (levothyroxine).
What are the Similarities Between Pituitary and Thyroid Dwarfism?
- Pituitary and thyroid dwarfism are two different types of dwarfism.
- Both conditions are due to insufficient amounts of certain medications.
- These conditions can be congenital.
- They may have similar symptoms like stunted growth, short stature, etc.
- Both conditions can be diagnosed through medical history, physical examination, and blood tests.
- They can be treated through the administration of specific hormones.
What is the Difference Between Pituitary and Thyroid Dwarfism?
Pituitary dwarfism is a medical condition that is due to a deficiency of growth hormones, while thyroid dwarfism is a medical condition that is due to a deficiency of thyroid hormones. Thus, this is the key difference between pituitary and thyroid dwarfism. Furthermore, pituitary dwarfism is a more common condition than thyroid dwarfism, which is a less common condition.
The below infographic presents the differences between pituitary and thyroid dwarfism in tabular form for side-by-side comparison.
Summary – Pituitary vs Thyroid Dwarfism
Pituitary and thyroid dwarfism are two different dwarfism conditions. Both conditions are characterized by similar symptoms such as short stature, stunted growth, etc. However, pituitary dwarfism happens due to a deficiency of growth hormone, while thyroid dwarfism happens due to a deficiency of thyroid hormone. So, this summarizes the difference between pituitary and thyroid dwarfism.
Reference:
1. Watson, Stephanie. “Congenital Hypothyroidism: Symptoms, Causes, and Treatments.” Healthline, Healthline Media, 17 Sept. 2018.
2. “Growth Hormone Deficiency.” Johns Hopkins Medicine, 19 Nov. 2019.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Image from page 158 of “The thyroid gland in health and disease” (1917)” By Internet Archive Book Images (Public Domain) via Flickr