Without treatment, life expectancy is reduced by 10 years; with treatment, life expectancy is not reduced.Acromegaly affects about 3 per 50,000 people. It is most commonly diagnosed in middle age. Males and females are affected with equal frequency. It was first described in the medical literature by Nicolas Saucerotte in 1772. The term is from the Greek ἄκρον (akron) meaning "extremity", and μέγα (mega) meaning "large". Signs and symptoms
Features that may result from a high level of GH or expanding tumor include:
Headaches – often severe and prolonged
Soft tissue swelling visibly resulting in enlargement of the hands, feet, nose, lips, and ears, and a general thickening of the skin
Soft tissue swelling of internal organs, notably the heart with the attendant weakening of its muscularity, and the kidneys, also the vocal cords resulting in a characteristic thick, deep voice and slowing of speech
Generalized expansion of the skull at the fontanelle
Pronounced brow protrusion, often with ocular distension (frontal bossing)
Pronounced lower jaw protrusion (prognathism) with attendant macroglossia (enlargement of the tongue) and teeth spacing
Hypertrichosis, hyperpigmentation and hyperhidrosis may occur in these people. : 499 
Skin tags
Carpal tunnel syndrome

Complications
Problems with bones and joints, including osteoarthritis, nerve compression syndrome due to bony overgrowth, and carpal tunnel syndrome
Hypertension
Diabetes mellitus
Cardiomyopathy, potentially leading to heart failure
Colorectal cancer
Sleep Apnea
Thyroid nodules and thyroid cancer
Hypogonadism
Compression of the optic chiasm by the growth of pituitary adenoma leading to visual problems

Causes
Pituitary adenoma
About 98% of cases of acromegaly are due to the overproduction of growth hormone by a benign tumor of the pituitary gland called an adenoma.
If fragments of patella bone stick out from the skin it is known as an open patella fracture, and closed if the overlying skin is intact. Treatment
Treatment may be with or without surgery, depending on the type of fracture and whether the overlying skin is intact or broken. Conservative
Undisplaced fractures can usually be treated by casting. Even some displaced fractures can be treated with casting as long as the person can straighten their leg without help, thus confirming that the quadriceps mechanism of the leg is intact. In this case the leg is immobilized in a straight position for the first three weeks and then increasing degrees of bending are allowed as healing occurs. Surgery
Most patella fractures are transverse or comminuted, hence the quadriceps mechanism is disrupted and they are treated by a combination of wires in a tension band construct. This unites the fractured bones, reconstructing the straightening mechanism of the leg.If the patella is broken in several places, that is  comminuted, then traditionally a patellectomy (removal of the whole patella) is performed in order to reconstruct the extensor mechanism and prevent the onset of an extension lag at the knee joint, resulting in instability. Some surgeons however would rather opt for internal fixation. A partial patellectomy is removal of only a portion of the patella, and may be carried out if at least 60% of the patella can be maintained.Open fractures of the patella require emergency treatment with irrigation, debridement and fixation.