scholarly journals Balanced assessment of growth disorders using clinical, endocrinological, and genetic approaches

2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 218-226
Author(s):  
Martin Oswald Savage ◽  
Helen Louise Storr
Keyword(s):  
Short Stature ◽  
Clinical Skills ◽  
Unknown Origin ◽  
Hormone Deficiency ◽  
Candidate Gene Approach ◽  
Growth Disorders ◽  
Monogenic Disorders ◽  
Balanced Assessment ◽  
Equal Importance ◽  
Genetic Probes

Determining the pathogenesis of pediatric growth disorders is often challenging. In many cases, no pathogenesis is identified, and a designation of idiopathic short stature is used. The investigation of short stature requires a combination of clinical, endocrinological, and genetic evaluation. The techniques used are described, with equal importance being given to each of the 3 approaches. Clinical skills are essential to elicit an accurate history, family pedigree, and symptoms of body system dysfunction. Endocrine assessment requires hormonal determination for the diagnosis of hormone deficiency and initiation of successful replacement therapy. Genetic analysis has added a new dimension to the investigation of short stature and now uses next-generation sequencing with a candidate gene approach to confirm probable recognizable monogenic disorders and exome sequencing for complex phenotypes of unknown origin. Using the 3 approaches of clinical, endocrine, and genetic probes with equal status in the hierarchy of investigational variables provides the clinician with the highest chance of identifying the correct causative pathogenetic mechanism in a child presenting with short stature of unknown origin.

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

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (10) ◽  
pp. 1096-1104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Rapaport ◽  
Peter A Lee ◽  
Judith L Ross ◽  
Paul Saenger ◽  
Vlady Ostrow ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Growth Hormone ◽  
Short Stature ◽  
Gestational Age ◽  
Small For Gestational Age ◽  
Growth Failure ◽  
Hormone Deficiency ◽  
Birth Size ◽  
Growth Disorders ◽  
Gh Therapy ◽  
The Impact

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.

scholarly journals Towards a Rational and Efficient Diagnostic Approach in Children Referred for Growth Failure to the General Paediatrician

2019 ◽  
Vol 91 (4) ◽  
pp. 223-240 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan M. Wit ◽  
Gerdine A. Kamp ◽  
Wilma Oostdijk ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Short Stature ◽  
Diagnostic Yield ◽  
Secondary Growth ◽  
Growth Failure ◽  
Bone Age ◽  
Bone Diseases ◽  
Diagnostic Approach ◽  
Hormone Deficiency ◽  
Growth Disorders ◽  
Metabolic Bone Diseases

Based on a recent Dutch national guideline, we propose a structured stepwise diagnostic approach for children with growth failure (short stature and/or growth faltering), aiming at high sensitivity for pathologic causes at acceptable specificity. The first step is a detailed clinical assessment, aiming at obtaining relevant clinical clues from the medical history (including family history), physical examination (emphasising head circumference, body proportions and dysmorphic features) and assessment of the growth curve. The second step consists of screening: a radiograph of the hand and wrist (for bone age and assessment of anatomical abnormalities suggestive for a skeletal dysplasia) and laboratory tests aiming at detecting disorders that can present as isolated short stature (anaemia, growth hormone deficiency, hypothyroidism, coeliac disease, renal failure, metabolic bone diseases, renal tubular acidosis, inflammatory bowel disease, Turner syndrome [TS]). We advise molecular array analysis rather than conventional karyotyping for short girls because this detects not only TS but also copy number variants and uniparental isodisomy, increasing diagnostic yield at a lower cost. Third, in case of diagnostic clues for primary growth disorders, further specific testing for candidate genes or a hypothesis-free approach is indicated; suspicion of a secondary growth disorder warrants adequate further targeted testing.

The Role of Auxologic and Growth Factor Measurements in the Diagnosis of Growth Hormone Deficiency

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 102 (Supplement_3) ◽  
pp. 524-526
Author(s):  
Raymond L. Hintz
Keyword(s):  
Growth Hormone ◽  
Growth Factor ◽  
Growth Hormone Deficiency ◽  
Short Stature ◽  
The Body ◽  
Hormone Deficiency ◽  
Insulin Like Growth Factor ◽  
Growth Study ◽  
Short Children ◽  
National Cooperative

The use of auxologic measurements in the diagnosis of short stature in children has a long history in pediatric endocrinology, and they have even been used as the primary criteria in selecting children for growth hormone (GH) therapy. Certainly, an abnormality in the control of growth is more likely in short children than in children of normal stature. However, most studies have shown little or no value of auxologic criteria in differentiating short children who have classic growth hormone deficiency (GHD) from short children who do not. In National Cooperative Growth Study Substudy VI, in more than 6000 children being assessed for short stature, the overall mean height SD score was −2.5 ± 1.1 and the body mass index standard deviation score was −0.5 ± 1.4. However, there were no significant differences in these measures between the patients who were found subsequently to have GHD and those who were not. There also was no consistent difference in the growth rates between the patients with classic GHD and those short children without a diagnosis of GHD. This probably reflects the fact that we are dealing with a selected population of children who were referred for short stature and are further selecting those who are the shortest for additional investigation. Growth factor measurements have been somewhat more useful in selecting patients with GHD and have been proposed as primary diagnostic criteria. However, in National Cooperative Growth Study Substudy VI, only small differences in the levels of insulin-like growth factor I and insulin-like growth factor binding protein 3 were seen between the patients who were selected for GH treatment and those who were not. Many studies indicate that the primary value of growth factor measurements is to exclude patients who are unlikely to have GHD or to identify those patients in whom an expedited work-up should be performed. The diagnosis of GHD remains difficult and must be based on all of the data possible and the best judgment of an experienced clinician. Even under ideal circumstances, errors of both overdiagnosis and underdiagnosis of GHD still are likely.

Pituitary volume in children with growth hormone deficiency, idiopathic short stature and controls

2016 ◽  
Vol 29 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marion Kessler ◽  
Michael Tenner ◽  
Michael Frey ◽  
Richard Noto
Keyword(s):  
Growth Hormone ◽  
Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Growth Hormone Deficiency ◽  
Short Stature ◽  
Hormone Secretion ◽  
Growth Hormone Secretion ◽  
Magnetic Resonance Images ◽  
Idiopathic Short Stature ◽  
Hormone Deficiency ◽  
Significant Difference

AbstractBackground:The objective of the study was to describe the pituitary volume (PV) in pediatric patients with isolated growth hormone deficiency (IGHD), idiopathic short stature (ISS) and normal controls.Methods:Sixty-nine patients (57 male, 12 female), with a mean age of 11.9 (±2.0), were determined to have IGHD. ISS was identified in 29 patients (20 male, 9 female), with a mean age of 12.7 (±3.7). Sixty-six controls (28 female, 38 male), mean age 9.8 (±4.7) were also included. Three-dimensional (3D) magnetic resonance images with contrast were obtained to accurately measure PV.Results:There was a significant difference in the mean PV among the three groups. The IGHD patients had a mean PV 230.8 (±89.6), for ISS patients it was 286.8 (±108.2) and for controls it was 343.7 (±145.9) (p<0.001). There was a normal increase in PV with age in the ISS patients and controls, but a minimal increase in the IGHD patients.Conclusions:Those patients with isolated GHD have the greatest reduction in PV compared to controls and the patients with ISS fall in between. We speculate that a possible cause for the slowed growth in some ISS patients might be related to diminished chronic secretion of growth hormone over time, albeit having adequate pituitary reserves to respond acutely to GH stimulation. Thus, what was called neurosecretory GHD in the past, might, in some patients, be relative pituitary hypoplasia and resultant diminished growth hormone secretion. Thus, PV determinations by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) could assist in the diagnostic evaluation of the slowly growing child.

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