A patient with an unusual form of lipodystrophy is described. The sharp demarcation of the fatty and fat free areas at the L-2 L-3 dermatome junction was the striking feature of this case. This observation led to speculation that the pathogenesis of lipodystrophy might be related to a neurologic or neurohumoral abnormality. Plasma catecholamines and urinary catecholamine excretion rates were normal. Sweat analysis revealed greater sweat production in the fat-free areas. Studies of carbohydrate and lipid metabolism revealed similarities to the related disease, lipoatrophic diabetes. A careful review of the literature supported the concepts that in lipodystrophy the line of demarcation between fatty and fat-free areas always conforms to derma-tome junctions and that lipodystrophy should be considered an incomplete variant of lipoatrophic diabetes.
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October 01 1967
Lipodystrophy A Variant of Lipoatrophic Diabetes
Terry Steinberg, MD;
Terry Steinberg, MD
Department of Medicine, University of California, California College of Medicine and the Los Angeles County General Hospital
Los Angeles, California
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Grant Gwinup, MD
Grant Gwinup, MD
Department of Medicine, University of California, California College of Medicine and the Los Angeles County General Hospital
Los Angeles, California
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Citation
Terry Steinberg, Grant Gwinup; Lipodystrophy A Variant of Lipoatrophic Diabetes. Diabetes 1 October 1967; 16 (10): 715–721. https://doi.org/10.2337/diab.16.10.715
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