Growth disorders are one of the common complications of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in children, adversely affecting both the quality of life and survival time of CKD patients. Recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) is an effective treatment for growth disorders in children with CKD. This article reviews the mechanisms underlying growth disorders in children with CKD, the therapeutic effects, safety, and precautions of rhGH, and long-term management of diagnosis and treatment of this disorder.
Humans ; Human Growth Hormone/adverse effects* ; Child ; Recombinant Proteins/adverse effects* ; Renal Insufficiency, Chronic/complications* ; Growth Disorders/etiology*

OBJECTIVES: To compare serum insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) and peak growth hormone (GH) levels between girls with isolated premature thelarche (IPT) and central precocious puberty (CPP), to construct a prediction model for progression from IPT to CPP, and to assess its diagnostic value. METHODS: Girls diagnosed with IPT (n=111) between January 2022 and August 2023 at the China-Japan Friendship Hospital and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps Hospital were retrospectively included. According to follow-up outcomes, participants were categorized into a CPP group (35 cases) and an IPT group (36 cases). A clinical prediction model for progression to CPP was constructed by multivariable logistic regression, and the contributions of IGF-1 and peak GH were evaluated. Restricted cubic spline analysis was used to assess the dose-response relationships of IGF-1 and peak GH with CPP. Decision curve analysis was applied to evaluate clinical utility. RESULTS: IGF-1 and peak GH were higher in the CPP group than in the IPT group (P<0.05). Compared with model 1 (without IGF-1 and peak GH), model 2 (with IGF-1 and peak GH) showed significantly higher area under the curve, integrated discrimination improvement, and net reclassification improvement (all P<0.05). Model 2 (χ 2=6.054, P=0.889) also demonstrated better goodness-of-fit than model 1 (χ 2=7.717, P=0.634). Nonlinear dose-response relationships were observed for peak GH and IGF-1 with CPP (P for overall trend <0.05; P for nonlinearity <0.05). Decision curve analysis indicated that combined prediction using IGF-1 and peak GH provided greater net benefit than either biomarker alone. CONCLUSIONS Peak GH and IGF-1 are closely associated with progression from IPT to CPP in girls. A clinical prediction model incorporating peak GH and IGF-1 can improve prediction of progression to CPP and yield higher net benefit.
Humans ; Female ; Puberty, Precocious/etiology* ; Insulin-Like Growth Factor I/analysis* ; Child ; Retrospective Studies ; Human Growth Hormone/blood* ; Predictive Value of Tests ; Child, Preschool ; Logistic Models

The oral glucose growth hormone suppression test is commonly used in the clinical diagnosis of acromegaly, but its results can be influenced by a variety of factors. This case report discusses a patient with a pituitary tumor and concurrent liver cirrhosis, highlighting the complexities in interpreting test results under such conditions. The patient, a 54-year-old male, presented with blurred vision as his primary complaint. Notably, the physical examination revealed no changes in facial features, no enlargement of hands or feet, and no other symptoms typically associated with acromegaly, which might otherwise suggest excessive growth hormone activity. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) of the pituitary gland indicated that the gland was within normal size parameters, but a small low-intensity lesion mea-suring approximately 3 mm×2 mm identified. This finding was consistent with a pituitary microadenoma. The patient's fasting growth hormone levels were significantly elevated at 8.470 μg/L, compared with the normal range of less than 2.47 μg/L. Conversely, fasting insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) levels were notably low, recorded at 41 and 52 μg/L, whereas the normal range for a person of his age was between 87 and 234 μg/L. Other pituitary hormones, including those regulating the thyroid, adrenal cortex, and sex hormones, were found to be within normal ranges. Despite this, during the glucose growth hormone suppression test, an abnormal elevation of growth hormone was observed. To investigate further, the patient was administered branched-chain amino acids, and the suppression test was repeated. However, the abnormal elevation of growth hormone persisted, indicating a failure to normalize the response. Given the patient's lack of clinical signs typically associated with elevated growth hormone secretion, the history of liver cirrhosis became a significant consideration. The disparity between elevated growth hormone levels and reduced IGF-1 levels suggested that the pituitary lesion was a non-functional adenoma rather than a source of excess hormone production. Consequently, it was concluded that the abnormal response of growth hormone to the glucose suppression test was likely related to the patient's liver cirrhosis. In addition to chronic liver disease, various other conditions could influence the results of the oral glucose tolerance growth hormone suppression test. According to the literature, factors such as puberty, diabetes, anorexia nervosa, and protein malnutrition could also affect test outcomes. These conditions could cause similar abnormalities in growth hormone dynamics, complicating the diagnosis. Therefore, clinicians must be vigilant and consider these potential influences when interpreting test results.For an accurate diagnosis of acromegaly, it is essential to combine clinical symptoms, detailed medical history, and imaging studies. The presence of conditions like liver cirrhosis should prompt careful interpretation of the test results, ensuring that other contributing factors are not overlooked. This comprehensive approach is crucial to avoid misdiagnosis and to ensure that appropriate treatment strategies are implemented based on a thorough understanding of the patient's overall health status.
Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pituitary Neoplasms/blood* ; Liver Cirrhosis/blood* ; Adenoma/blood* ; Human Growth Hormone/blood* ; Insulin-Like Growth Factor I/metabolism* ; Acromegaly/etiology* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Child ; Humans ; Human Growth Hormone/therapeutic use* ; Growth Disorders/therapy*

Idiopathic short stature (ISS) is a term that encompasses a group of short stature disorders with unknown etiology. The genetic factors associated with ISS are complex, and the known genetic mechanisms include alterations in hormones, hormone receptors, or related pathways, defects in fundamental cellular processes (such as intracellular signaling pathways and transcriptional regulation), issues with extracellular matrix or paracrine signaling, as well as genetic variations in the genes encoding these proteins. Recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) therapy is currently an effective clinical method for improving height in children with ISS. However, the efficacy of rhGH treatment on ISS varies among children with different genetic mechanisms. This paper analyzes and elucidates the genetic mechanisms of ISS and the effects of rhGH on ISS based on existing clinical research, aiming to enhance the understanding of ISS and provide references for improving the height of these children.
Humans ; Human Growth Hormone/therapeutic use* ; Growth Disorders/genetics* ; Child ; Body Height/genetics*

OBJECTIVES: To establish an efficient and clinically applicable predictive model and scoring system for central precocious puberty (CPP) in girls, and to develop a diagnostic prediction application. METHODS: A total of 342 girls aged 4 to 9 years with precocious puberty were included, comprising 216 cases of CPP and 126 cases of isolated premature thelarche. Lasso regression was used to screen for predictive factors, and logistic regression was employed to establish the predictive model. Additionally, a scoring system was constructed using the evidence weight binning method. Data from 129 girls aged 4 to 9 years with precocious puberty were collected for external validation of the scoring system. RESULTS: The logistic regression model incorporated five predictive factors: age, insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), serum follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), the luteinizing hormone (LH)/FSH baseline ratio, and uterine thickness. The calculation formula was: ln(P/1-P)=-8.439 + 0.216 × age (years) + 0.008 × IGF-1 (ng/mL) + 0.159 × FSH (mIU/mL) + 9.779 × LH/FSH baseline ratio + 0.284 × uterine thickness (mm). This model demonstrated good discriminative ability (area under the curve=0.892) and calibration (Hosmer-Lemeshow test P>0.05). The scoring system based on this logistic regression model showed good discrimination in both the prediction model and external validation datasets, with areas under the curve of 0.895 and 0.805, respectively. Based on scoring system scores, the population was stratified into three risk levels: high, medium, and low. In the high-risk group, the prevalence of CPP exceeded 90%, while the proportion was lower in the medium and low-risk groups. CONCLUSIONS The CPP diagnostic predictive model established for girls aged 4 to 9 years exhibits good diagnostic performance. The scoring system can effectively and rapidly stratify the risk of CPP, providing valuable reference for clinical decision-making.
Humans ; Puberty, Precocious/diagnosis* ; Female ; Child, Preschool ; Child ; Follicle Stimulating Hormone/blood* ; Insulin-Like Growth Factor I/analysis* ; Luteinizing Hormone/blood* ; Logistic Models

Objective: To investigate the clinicopathological characteristics of plurihormonal PIT1-lineage pituitary neuroendocrine tumors. Methods: Forty-eight plurihormonal PIT1-lineage tumors were collected between January 2018 and April 2022 from the pathological database of Sanbo Brain Hospital, Capital Medical University. The related clinical and imaging data were retrieved. H&E, immunohistochemical and special stains were performed. Results: Out of the 48 plurihormonal PIT1-lineage tumors included, 13 cases were mature PIT1-lineage tumors and 35 cases were immature PIT1-lineage tumors. There were some obvious clinicopathological differences between the two groups. Clinically, the mature plurihormonal PIT1-lineage tumor mostly had endocrine symptoms due to increased hormone production, while a small number of immature PIT1-lineage tumors had endocrine symptoms accompanied by low-level increased serum pituitary hormone; patients with the immature PIT1-lineage tumors were younger than the mature PIT1-lineage tumors; the immature PIT1-lineage tumors were larger in size and more likely invasive in imaging. Histopathologically, the mature PIT1-lineage tumors were composed of large eosinophilic cells with high proportion of growth hormone expression, while the immature PIT1-lineage tumors consisted of chromophobe cells with a relatively higher expression of prolactin; the mature PIT1-lineage tumors had consistently diffuse cytoplasmic positive staining for keratin, while the immature PIT1-lineage tumors had various expression for keratin; the immature PIT1-lineage tumors showed more mitotic figures and higher Ki-67 proliferation index; in addition, 25.0% (12/48) of PIT1-positive plurihormonal tumors showed abnormal positive staining for gonadotropin hormones. There was no significant difference in the progression-free survival between the two groups (P=0.648) by Kaplan-Meier analysis. Conclusions: Plurihormonal PIT1-lineage tumor belongs to a rare type of PIT1-lineage pituitary neuroendocrine tumors, most of which are of immature lineage. Clinically increased symptoms owing to pituitary hormone secretion, histopathologically increased number of eosinophilic tumor cells with high proportion of growth hormone expression, diffusely cytoplasmic keratin staining and low proliferative activity can help differentiate the mature plurihormonal PIT1-lineage tumors from the immature PIT1-lineage tumors. The immature PIT1-lineage tumors have more complicated clinicopathological characteristics.
Humans ; Neuroendocrine Tumors ; Pituitary Neoplasms/pathology* ; Pituitary Hormones ; Growth Hormone/metabolism* ; Keratins

Background: Growth hormone has been used as an adjunct in ovarian stimulation of IVF cycles for the past three decades. However, the exact mechanism of its role in improving oocyte quality has not been thoroughly investigated. Although a clear indication for GH co-treatment is in infertile women with GH deficiency, GH has been given mostly to poor ovarian responders. Method: This paper is a review of the most recent published data on the role of GH supplementation in improving oocyte quality in younger women who are suboptimal or unexpected poor responders to standard ovarian stimulation. Results: Retrospective cohort and randomized trials demonstrated an improvement in oocyte quality through morphological parameters, mitochondrial function, biomarkers, GH receptors, insulin growth factor, markers of oxidative stress, mature oocytes, good quality embryos, implantation rate, clinical pregnancy and live birth. Conclusion Current data suggest GH supplementation may improve oocyte and embryo qualities, endometrial receptivity, clinical pregnancy and live birth. However, better quality evidence is needed before a recommendation can be made for GH supplementation to be given to infertile women who are suboptimal or poor ovarian responders.
growth hormone ; hormone receptor ; IGF-1 ; IVF

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the clinical features of 3M syndrome and effect of growth hormone therapy. METHODS: Clinical data of four children diagnosed with 3M syndrome by whole exome sequencing at Hunan Children's Hospital from January 2014 to February 2022 were retrospectively analyzed, which included clinical manifestation, results of genetic testing and recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) therapy. A literature review was also carried our for Chinese patients with 3M syndrome. RESULTS: The clinical manifestations of the 4 patients included severe growth retardation, facial dysmorphism and skeletal malformations. Two patients were found to harbor homozygous variants of CUL7 gene, namely c.4717C>T (p.R1573*) and c.967_993delinsCAGCTGG (p.S323Qfs*33). Two patients were found to harbor 3 heterozygous variants of the OBSL1 gene including c.1118G>A (p.W373*), c.458dupG (p.L154Pfs*1002) and c.690dupC (p.E231Rfs*23), among which c.967_993delinsCAGCTGG and c.1118G>A were unreported previously. Eighteen Chinese patients with 3M syndrome were identified through the literature review, including 11 cases (11/18, 61.1%) carrying CUL7 gene variants and 7 cases (7/18, 38.9%) carrying OBSL1 gene variants. The main clinical manifestations were in keeping with previously reported. Four patients were treated with growth hormone, 3 showed obvious growth acceleration, and no adverse reaction was noted. CONCLUSION 3M syndrome has a typical appearance and obvious short stature. To attain accurate diagnosis, genetic testing should be recommended for children with a stature of less than -3 SD and facial dysmorphism. The long-term efficacy of growth hormone therapy for patients with 3M syndrome remains to be observed.
Humans ; Child ; Retrospective Studies ; Dwarfism/genetics* ; Muscle Hypotonia/genetics* ; Growth Hormone/therapeutic use* ; Cytoskeletal Proteins/genetics*

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the therapeutic effect of recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) on children with growth hormone deficiency (GHD) and different pituitary developmental conditions. METHODS: A prospective study was performed on 90 children with GHD who were admitted to Xuchang Maternity and Child Health Hospital from June 2020 to December 2021. According to pituitary height on the median sagittal plane, they were divided into three groups: pituitary dysplasia group (n=45), normal pituitary group (n=31), and enlarged pituitary growth group (n=14). The changes in body height, growth velocity, height standard deviation score and serum levels of insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3) and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) were examined after treatment in the above three groups, and the differences of the above indices before and after treatment were compared among the three groups. RESULTS: After treatment, all three groups had significant increases in body height, growth velocity, height standard deviation score, and the serum levels of IGFBP-3 and IGF-1 (P<0.05). Compared with the normal pituitary group, the pituitary dysplasia group and the enlarged pituitary growth group had significantly higher values in terms of the differences in body height, growth velocity, height standard deviation score, IGF-1, and IGFBP-3 before and after treatment (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the incidence rate of adverse reactions among the three groups (P>0.05). CONCLUSIONS In GHD children with different pituitary developmental conditions, rhGH can promote bone growth and increase body height, especially in children with pituitary dysplasia and pituitary hyperplasia, with good safety.
Child ; Female ; Humans ; Pregnancy ; Body Height ; Human Growth Hormone/therapeutic use* ; Hyperplasia ; Insulin-Like Growth Factor Binding Protein 3 ; Insulin-Like Growth Factor I ; Prospective Studies ; Pituitary Gland/pathology* ; Recombinant Proteins/therapeutic use*