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Growth of short children born small for gestational age and their response to growth hormone therapy

Hemchand Krishna Prasad1, Vaman V Khadilkar, Shashi A Chiplonkar

  • 1Department of Endocrinology, Bharati Vidyapeeth University Medical College, and Growth and Pediatric Endocrine Unit, Hirabai Cowasji Jehangir Medical Research Institute, Jehangir Hospital, Pune, Maharashtra, India.

Indian Pediatrics
|December 21, 2012
PubMed

Insights

Growth hormone therapy significantly improves height in children born small for gestational age (SGA) who have growth issues. This treatment enhances height without accelerating the onset of puberty in these children.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatrics
  • Endocrinology
  • Growth Disorders

Background:

  • Children born small for gestational age (SGA) may experience growth failure.
  • Growth hormone (GH) is a treatment option for SGA children who do not achieve catch-up growth.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the efficacy of GH therapy in improving height in SGA children.
  • To assess the effect of GH on pubertal progression in SGA children.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective comparison of 20 SGA children treated with GH (Group I) versus 20 matched SGA controls not treated with GH (Group II).
  • Auxological criteria were used to select participants.
  • Growth data, including height-for-age Z-score (HAZ) and growth velocity Z-score, were analyzed over two years.

Main Results:

  • GH therapy significantly increased HAZ in Group I compared to Group II (P<0.05).
  • Growth velocity Z-scores significantly improved in both the first and second years of GH treatment in Group I versus Group II (P<0.05).
  • There was no significant difference in the percentage of pubertal children between the groups (P>0.05).

Conclusions:

  • Growth hormone therapy is effective in improving height in short SGA children.
  • GH treatment does not accelerate pubertal progression in SGA children.

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