Hyperplasia - Examples in Human Biology and Disease

Examples in Human Biology and Disease

Some of the more commonly known clinical forms of hyperplasia, or conditions leading to hyperplasia, are:

• Benign prostatic hyperplasia, also known as prostate enlargement.
• Cushing's disease – Physiopathology of hyperplasia of adrenal cortex due to increased circulating level of ACTH (adrenocorticotropic hormone).
• Congenital adrenal hyperplasia
• Endometrial hyperplasia – Hyperproliferation of the endometrium, usually in response to unopposed estrogen stimulation in the setting of polycystic ovary syndrome or exogenous administration of hormones. Atypical endometrial hyperplasia may represent an early neoplastic process which can lead to endometrial adenocarcinoma.
• Hemihyperplasia when only half (or one side) of the body is affected, sometimes generating limbs of different lengths.
• Hyperplasia of the breast – "Hyperplastic" lesions of the breast include usual ductal hyperplasia, a focal expansion of the number of cells in a terminal breast duct, and atypical ductal hyperplasia, in which a more abnormal pattern of growth is seen, and which is associated with an increased risk of developing breast cancer. The biology of these lesions is the subject of dispute, with some authorities arguing that both of these lesions are the result of neoplasia, and that the application of the term "hyperplasia" in this instance is "inaccurate."
• Intimal hyperplasia – The thickening of the Tunica intima of a blood vessel as a complication of a reconstruction procedure or endarterectomy. Intimal hyperplasia is the universal response of a vessel to injury and is an important reason of late bypass graft failure, particularly in vein and synthetic vascular grafts.
• Focal epithelial hyperplasia (also known as Heck's disease) – This is a wart-like growth in the mucous tissues of the mouth or, rarely, throat that is caused by certain sub-types of the human papillomavirus (HPV). Heck's disease has not been known to cause cancer.
• Sebaceous hyperplasia – In this condition, small yellowish growths develop on the skin, usually on the face. This condition is neither contagious nor dangerous.
• Compensatory liver hyperplasia – The liver undergoes cellular division after acute injury, resulting in new cells that restore liver function back to baseline. Approximately 75% of the liver can be acutely damaged or resected with seemingly full regeneration through hepatocyte division, i.e., hyperplasia. This is what makes living-donor liver transplants possible.