Lack of correlation between clinical data and growth hormone concentrations in cord blood

Growth hormone concentrations were measured in 182 umbilical cord blood samples taken at the time of birth. The mean value in 165 full-term, normal weight infants was 31.5 +/- 25.9 ng/ml SD. 14 prematures had significantly higher levels (50.0 +/- 38.4 p less than 0.01). There were no statistically significant correlations to any of the following parameters: complication of pregnancy by toxaemia, duration of labour, presence of umbilical cord contortion, perinatal distress, Apgar index, mode of delivery, body weight, body length, ratio of weight to length, and blood glucose. There was a wide scatter of individual values in this study as well as in previous investigations. We think it unlikely that those variations are purely accidental. Hence, yet undefined factors must play a major role in the regulation of GH secretion in the perinatal period.