title: Octreotide for acromegaly treatment: a reappraisal.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Acromegaly is a rare disorder characterized by excess secretion of growth hormone (GH) generally caused by a pituitary macroadenoma and associated with reduced life expectancy if the disease is untreated. This article covers the recent available evidences published on octreotide , the first somatostatin analog introduced into clinical practice for the medical treatment of acromegaly.
  
  
  METHODS
  This article discusses i) pharmacology of somatostatin and octreotide; ii) biochemical effects of regular octreotide and long-acting repeatable formulation; iii) tumor shrinkage effects of octreotide in acromegaly; iv) impact of octreotide on acromegalic clinical manifestations and chronic complications; v) safety of octreotide and vi) place of octreotide in the guidelines for acromegaly treatment. Full-text articles in the English language were selected from a PubMed search spanning 1984 - 2013, for keywords including 'octreotide,' 'acromegaly,' 'GH,' 'IGF-I,' and 'tumor shrinkage.' Reference lists in selected papers were also used to broaden the search.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Octreotide is a mature drug with a consolidated favorable benefit versus risks profile in the treatment of acromegaly.
authors.affiliation: University of Brescia, Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences , Brescia , Italy.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Giustina
authors.forename: Ioannis
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Karamouzis
authors.forename: Ilaria
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Patelli
authors.forename: Gherardo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mazziotti
mesh_terms: D000172:Acromegaly / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D018931:Antineoplastic Agents, Hormonal / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy; D015282:Octreotide / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D018931:Antineoplastic Agents, Hormonal; D015282:Octreotide