hypertrophy /hīpur″trəfē/ [Gk, hyper + trophe, nourishment] , an increase in the size of an organ caused by an increase in the size of the cells rather than the number of cells. The cells of the heart and kidney are particularly prone to hypertrophy. Also called overgrowth. Compare atrophy, auxesis, hyperplasia. Kinds include adaptive hypertrophy, compensatory hypertrophy, Marie’s hypertrophy, physiological hypertrophy, unilateral hypertrophy. −hypertrophic, adj.
