Final height in children with growth hormone deficiency

Area of Science:

• Pediatrics
• Endocrinology
• Growth Disorders

Background:

• Short stature affects numerous children, necessitating effective treatment strategies.
• Growth hormone deficiency (GHD) is a common cause of short stature in pediatric populations.
• Understanding treatment outcomes for growth hormone (GH) is crucial for clinical practice.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of GH therapy in children with short stature.
• To assess final height outcomes in patients with varying degrees of GHD and idiopathic short stature.
• To analyze height velocity and compare final height to target height in treated pediatric patients.

Main Methods:

• A cohort of 46 pediatric patients (28 boys, 18 girls) received subcutaneous GH injections 6-7 times/week.
• Patients were categorized by GHD status: total GHD (28), partial GHD (12), and short stature without GHD (6).
• Etiologies included brain tumors (8 patients) and multiple pituitary hormone deficiency (9 patients).

Main Results:

• Mean final height standard deviation score (SDS) for all patients was -1.11, with similar outcomes in boys (-1.09 SDS) and girls (-1.13 SDS).
• Final height (-1.05 SDS) compared favorably to target height SDS (-0.80 SDS) in 42 patients.
• Height velocity in the last year ranged from 2.1 to 9.9 cm/year in 34 patients, with 12 patients showing less than 2 cm/year growth.

Conclusions:

• GH therapy demonstrates positive outcomes for pediatric short stature, including those with GHD.
• Most patients are expected to reach their target height with continued GH treatment.
• Subcutaneous GH injections are an effective delivery method for improving growth in pediatric patients.