ENDOCRINE AND OTHER CLINICAL MANIFESTATIONS OF HYPOTHALAMIC DISEASE A SURVEY OF 60 CASES, WITH AUTOPSIES*

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Abstract
A statistical evaluation is presented as to the incidence of symptomatology and laboratory abnormalities in 60 cases, collected from the literature, with neoplastic, inflammatory, and other pathology in the hypothalamus, confirmed by autopsy in each case. A high incidence of involvement of gonadal function was evident. There was corroborating statistical evidence that precocious puberty is caused by a pathologic process in the posterior hypothalamus, requiring an intact anterior pituitary. Hypogonadism, on the other hand, resulted from lesions in the infundibulotuberal region, with or without an intact pituitary. The frequency of occurrence of emaciation, obesity, somnolence, diabetes insipidus, dyshidrosis, anorexia, bulimia, urinary incontinence, and dissociation of temp., pulse, and respiration is discussed. The diagnostic importance of the statistical evidence that these vegetative-endocrine signs tend to precede neurologic symtomatology is stressed.

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