Medical Definition for Palumboism.
Palumboism. (Pa-lum-bo-is-m): A metabolic disorder characterized by progressive atrophy of the extremities and hypertrophy of the pelvic girdle, internal organs, cranium and jaw. This disorder, to date only described in males, results from massive abuse of human growth hormone, synthetic insulin, anabolic steroids and extreme overeating. A grading system has been proposed, with 3 clinical stages. In Stage III, the end stage, the patient is profoundly obese, waist girth has been measured at over 40 inches, the extremities are very cachectic and the cranium and facial bones are distorted.
An interesting subtype of this disorder, has been described in one patient. The affected patient, in addition to having stage 3 palumboism, also suffered from several psychiatric co-morbidities, included Narcisistic Personality Disorder and Acute Psychosis with Delusions of Grandeur. See Kamalism.