Excessive cortisol levels produced by body abnormalities or through the over-use of cortisone derivative drugs causes symptoms such as buffalo hump, fat accumulation in the abdomen and glucose intolerance. Tests performed on the patients did not indicate Cushing's. In this study patients were asked if they had noticed body changes. The true number according to Morris Schambelan of the University of California in San Francisco is probably somewhere in between, but closer to the upper limit. The abnormalities and changes noted in the blood of patients are thought by many to be directly associated with this lipodystrophy and fat redistribution.
Experts disagree on whether the fat and blood abnormalities form a part of a single syndrome.
It was thought that elevation of triglycerides might be responsible for wasting. The elevation of alpha interferon is responsible for the decrease in triglyceride clearance. Finally, scientists have determined that persons can have a genetic predisposition to hypertriglyceridemia. There have been several reports of glucose intolerance and insulin resistance in patients on protease inhibitor therapy. These abnormalities do not seem to be related to the development of fat redistribution.