Can provocative growth hormone testing predict the response to recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) treatment?
Greco. M M; Cappa. M M; Perruzza. I I; Rizzoni. G G
Key Findings
- Provocative endocrine tests did not correlate with height velocity after one year of rhGH therapy.
- No endocrine testing reliably predicts response to rhGH in children on renal replacement therapy.
- Alternative predictors of rhGH response are needed.
Practical Outcomes
- If you're considering rhGH for growth or anti‑aging purposes, you can skip costly GH stimulation tests because they don't forecast benefit. Focus on other factors (e.g., baseline IGF‑1, clinical status) to decide on treatment. This streamlines protocols and reduces unnecessary lab work.
Summary
In kids with kidney disease, doing hormone challenge tests before giving growth hormone didn't help predict how much they would grow, so those tests aren't useful for deciding whether to start treatment.
Abstract
Treatment with rhGH has been proven to be useful in children with chronic renal insufficiency and stunted growth. The aim of this study was to assess the usefulness of endocrinological provocative testing in predicting results to rhGH treatment. Endocrinological investigations performed in 14 children on renal replacement therapy did not correlate with increment of height velocity in the first year of rhGH therapy. It is concluded that no endocrinological testing is useful before starting rhGH treatment; other predictors of the response to rhGH administration are needed.
Study Information
pubmed
1996