Three years of growth hormone therapy in children born small for gestational age: results from the ANSWER Program

Growth hormone (GH) is used to treat short stature and growth failure associated with growth disorders. Birth size and GH status variably modulate response to GH therapy. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of birth size on response to GH therapy, and to determine the impact of GH status in patients born small for gestational age (SGA) on response to GH therapy. Data from the prospective, non-interventional American Norditropin Studies: Web-Enabled Research (ANSWER) Program was analyzed for several growth outcomes in response to GH therapy over 3 years. GH-naïve children from the ANSWER Program were included in this analysis: SGA with peak GH ≥10 ng/mL (20 mIU/L), SGA with peak GH <10 ng/mL (20 mIU/L), isolated growth hormone deficiency (IGHD) born SGA, IGHD not born SGA and idiopathic short stature. For patients with IGHD, those who did not meet criteria for SGA at birth showed greater improvements in height SDS and BMI SDS than patients with IGHD who met criteria for SGA at birth. For patients born SGA, response to GH therapy varied with GH status. Therefore, unlike previous guidelines, we recommend that GH status be established in patients born SGA to optimize GH therapy.

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Delayed Bone Age Might Accelerate the Response to Human Growth Hormone Treatment in Small for Gestational Age Children with Short Stature

International Journal of Endocrinology ◽

10.1155/2019/8454303 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 2019 ◽

pp. 1-6

Author(s):

Jung-Eun Moon ◽

Cheol Woo Ko

Keyword(s):

Growth Hormone ◽

Short Stature ◽

Gestational Age ◽

Small For Gestational Age ◽

Human Growth ◽

Bone Age ◽

Pediatric Endocrinology ◽

Gh Therapy ◽

Gh Treatment ◽

The Impact

Purpose. Growth hormone (GH) treatment is recommended to improve growth and psychosocial problems in short stature children born small for gestational age (SGA). Although GH therapy in these patients has been extensively studied, the impact of therapy according to delays in bone age (BA) is not known well. Objective. To investigate the effects of GH therapy in SGA patients with short stature according to BA delay. Methods. We retrospectively analyzed changes in height SD score (SDS) and BA/chronological age (CA) after 6 and 12 months of GH therapy in patients grouped according to BA delay. We studied 27 SGA children with short stature in the pediatric endocrinology clinic of Kyungpook National University Children’s Hospital. Results. Of the 27 patients, 9 had <2 years of BA delay, while 18 had >2 years of delay. There were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of gestational age and weight at birth, height SDS, IGF-1 SDS, and growth hormone dosage at the beginning of therapy. However, height SDS increased significantly in the group with >2 years of BA delay after 6 months of GH therapy (−2.50 ± 0.61 vs −1.87 ± 0.82; p=0.037) and 12 months (−2.27 ± 0.70 vs −1.63 ± 0.65; p=0.002). When height SDS was compared between with and without GHD, there were no significant differences. Conclusions. Delayed BA (>2 years) may impact the response to GH treatment in SGA children with short stature.

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