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How is atrophy different from hypertrophy?
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atrophy
One example of atrophy is the progressive loss of bone that occurs in osteoporosis (normal bone shown on left; osteoporotic bone shown on right).
In the context of pathology, atrophy and hypertrophy represent opposite cellular adaptations to stress or changing physiological demands.12
- Atrophy is the decrease in the size of a cell, tissue, or organ that was previously of normal size. This reduction occurs through a decrease in the size or number of component cells. It is often associated with aging, starvation, loss of hormonal stimulation, or reduced workload.34
- Hypertrophy is the increase in the size of individual cells, which leads to an increase in the size of the organ or tissue. This is typically an adaptive response to increased functional demand, such as muscle growth resulting from heavy labor or strength training, where cells produce more contractile filaments to handle the workload.52
While hypertrophy can be a healthy adaptation to stress, it can also be pathological if the growth becomes extreme or dysfunctional, such as in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, where abnormal muscle growth impairs heart function. Similarly, atrophy is a natural part of development and aging but can be a sign of disease when it leads to the loss of essential function.1643