A Controlled Trial of Methionyl Growth Hormone Therapy in Prepubertal Children with Short Stature, Subnormal Growth Rate and Normal Growth Hormone Response to Secretagogues

ABSTRACT. Thirty short and slowly growing children with normal plasma growth hormone (GH) responses to standard provocation tests were randomly assigned to either a group ( n = 20) undergoing treatment with methionyl GH (somatrem), 2IU per m² body surface s.c. daily, or a control group ( n = 10). Twelve out of 18 children who completed the first year of treatment showed a height velocity increment of more than 2 cm/year. The mean (SD) growth velocity of the treatment group increased by 3.0 (1.9) cm/year over the first year, compared with -0.2 (0.7) cm/year in the control group. Neither parameters of endogenous GH secretion nor plasma IGF-I levels showed a significant correlation with the growth response. Of the auxological variables studied, pre-treatment growth velocity ( r = 0.8) and the short-term height velocity increment ( r = 0.7–0.9) showed significant correlations with the growth response in the first year of treatment. Somatrem therapy was without side effects, except in one child who developed anti-GH antibodies in combination with a poor growth response.