Growth hormone deficiency in adults: a review

For more than 35 years, growth hormone (GH) has been used to promote linear growth in GH-deficient children. Previously, GH replacement in adults was limited to the supply of human pituitary-derived GH. In addition, until recently, GH replacement was not deemed clinically indicated. With the introduction of recombinant human prion-free GH, replacement therapy in GH-deficient adults has become feasible, and its use has burgeoned. In this review, recent studies on GH therapy in healthy and GH-deficient adults are evaluated to provide a rational basis for the widened scope of its clinical application.