Old to thin

Introduction The health hazards of obesity are well known. Therefore, there is a saying that there is money to buy old and thin. But nothing is absolute. In terms of weight loss, it can be divided into two situations: one is physical weight loss, which has been the case for many years, and there is no physiological abnormality, which is related to heredity. The other is pathological wasting, caused by certain obvious or hidden diseases. The thinner is not only easy to get tired, has poor physical strength, but also has low resistance, poor immunity, weak cold resistance and disease resistance, and is susceptible to various diseases.

Cause

When a person's diet, daily life, labor and other factors are basically unchanged, the weight will drop significantly in the short term, and should be highly alert to the possibility of pathological weight loss. Common diseases that cause pathological weight loss are as follows:

1. Malignant tumors: The elderly are high-risk populations of cancer. This is because people's immunity and resistance are reduced after they reach old age.

2, hyperthyroidism: this disease is more common in young and middle-aged women.

3. Diabetes: The disease is a common disease in middle-aged and elderly people.

4, adrenal insufficiency: clinically more common in the elderly.

5, chronic digestive tract diseases: such as chronic gastritis, ulcer disease, chronic enteritis, chronic liver disease, chronic pancreatitis, etc., due to digestion and absorption disorders, a large number of nutrients are lost, leading to malnutrition loss.

6, drug-induced weight loss: the elderly are often suffering from a variety of diseases, oral administration of a variety of drugs, drug factors are also an important cause of weight loss in the elderly.

7, a variety of heart disease: such as coronary heart disease, pulmonary heart disease, hypertensive heart disease, rheumatic heart disease.

8. In addition, chronic wasting diseases such as tuberculosis and parasitic diseases, as well as autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid and systemic lupus erythematosus, are also common causes of wasting.

an examination

Common diseases that cause pathological weight loss are as follows:

1, malignant tumor

The elderly are high-risk populations of cancer. This is because people's immunity and resistance are reduced after they reach old age. Due to the malignant proliferation of cancer cells, a large amount of nutrients are consumed, which accelerates the catabolism of the body. In addition, cancer patients often have a diminished function of digestion and absorption, resulting in a progressive decline in body weight. This is often the only manifestation of early cancer and should be highly valued by the elderly.

2, hyperthyroidism

The disease is more common in young and middle-aged women, mainly characterized by excessive appetite, weight loss, heat and sweat, heart palpitations, irritability and irritability. The signs are goiter and extraocular processes. The diagnosis of typical cases is not difficult. In contrast, the incidence of hyperthyroidism in the elderly is low, but the symptoms are atypical, often neither appetite or excitement, thyroid enlargement and exophthalmos are rare, mainly characterized by progressive weight loss, loss of appetite, Depressed apathy, due to atypical symptoms, the rate of clinical misdiagnosis is high. Therefore, for elderly people who are progressively thin and accompanied by anorexia and affective disorders, attention should be paid to the possibility of hyperthyroidism.

3, diabetes

The disease is a common disease in middle-aged and elderly people. The typical symptoms are drinking, polyuria, polyphagia and weight loss, which is what we often say three more and one less. However, there are many elderly diabetic patients with "drinking, polyuria, and more food" symptoms are not obvious, and the prominent performance is weight loss. In addition, some patients with diabetes due to combined autonomic dysfunction, leading to gastric dysmotility, abdominal distension, anomalies, often misdiagnosed as chronic gastritis. Therefore, for elderly people with unexplained weight loss, blood sugar and urine sugar should be routinely tested to rule out diabetes.

4, adrenal insufficiency

Clinically more common in middle-aged and elderly people, early symptoms can only be manifested as weight loss, and then gradually appear skin mucosal pigmentation, if accompanied by hypotension, hypoglycemia, hypothermia, the possibility of this disease is greater, detection of urine 17 Hydroxy, 17-urinary corticosteroids, the value of which is helpful for diagnosis.

5 = chronic digestive tract disease

Such as chronic gastritis, ulcer disease, chronic enteritis, chronic liver disease, chronic pancreatitis, etc., due to digestion and absorption disorders, a large number of nutrients are lost, leading to malnutrition loss.

6, drug-induced weight loss

Older people are often suffering from a variety of diseases, taking a variety of drugs, of which aminophylline, aspirin, erythromycin, etc. can reduce appetite, so that nutrient intake is insufficient. Long-term use of fruit and other laxatives can affect the intestinal absorption function, thyroxine tablets, thyroid stimulating hormone, amphetamine sulfate, etc. can enhance the body's metabolism and consumption. Therefore, the drug factor is also an important cause of weight loss in the elderly.

7, a variety of heart disease

Such as coronary heart disease, pulmonary heart disease, hypertensive heart and brain disease, rheumatic heart disease, etc., when there is cardiac insufficiency, especially right heart dysfunction, will lead to gastrointestinal and liver congestion, gastrointestinal motility, digestive enzymes Reduced secretion, loss of appetite, decreased digestion and absorption and caused weight loss.

8. In addition, chronic wasting diseases such as tuberculosis and parasitic diseases, as well as autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid and systemic lupus erythematosus, are also common causes of wasting.

Differential diagnosis

The old differential diagnosis:

1. Consumptive weight loss: refers to the performance of weight loss caused by consumptive diseases, which can be found in tuberculosis, diabetes, hyperthyroidism and the like.

2, systemic weight loss: refers to the body caused by disease or some factors, weight loss, common in neuroendocrine and metabolic diseases, malignant tumors, chronic infections, digestive tract diseases, mental anorexia (neurolyorexia), severe trauma With burns.

3, simple weight loss: including physical weight loss and exogenous weight loss. Institutional wasting is mainly non-gradual weight loss and has certain heritability. Exogenous wasting is usually affected by various factors such as diet, lifestyle and psychology. Insufficient food intake, partial eclipse, anorexia, missing meals, irregular life and lack of exercise, eating habits and work stress, mental stress and excessive fatigue are the causes of exogenous wasting. Simple upper body weight loss is a manifestation of progressive lipodystrophy. Progressive lipodystrophy is a rare autonomic nervous system disorder characterized by adipose tissue metabolic disorders. The clinical and histological features are slowly progressive bilateral distribution with substantially symmetrical, well-defined, subcutaneous adipose tissue atrophy or Disappeared, sometimes combined with limited adipose tissue hyperplasia, hypertrophy.

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