Constitutional disorders of homeostasis. The genetic aspect of diabetes mellitus, essential hypertension and obesity

Abstract

SummaryThere are abnormal states leading to diseases that are not confined to lesions or functional defects of particular organs but that are best interpreted from a broader view as result of deficient homeostatic mechanisms. Constitutional diabetes mellitus, hypertension and obesity belong to this category. The respective homeostatic defect involves the function of many organs and is genetic in nature. In contrast tp these constitutional states diabetes, hypertension and obesity can develop also as manifestation of localized and well defined diseases of any one of the organs which are links in the chain securing the respective homeostasis. These much less common disease types are symptomatic diabetes, hypertension or obesity. There is reason to assume that the constitutional types have a multifactorial (polygenic) causation which makes further elucidation of the mode of hereditary transmission very difficult.