Hormone combination helps short teens become taller
17 Sep 2020
In teens with short stature, the combination of gonadotropin releasing hormone analogue (GnRHa) and recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) yields a significant increase in adult height, as shown in a study.
A total of 94 adolescents with normal pubertal onset and short stature were treated with GnRHa/rhGH: 49 boys for a mean of 24.84 months and 45 girls for a mean of 23.89 months. Among them, 25 boys and 12 girls had idiopathic short stature (ISS). All participants were followed to measure their adult height.
At baseline, in boys, the height (Ht) standard deviation score (SDS) was −1.82, while the target height was 168.98 cm. In girls, the HtSDS was −1.10, and the target height was 157.90 cm. After treatment, adult height SDS increased by 1.37 (p=0.000) in boys and by 1.28 (p=0.000) in girls.
The adult height in boys was 169.96 cm, taller by 0.98 cm than the target height (p=0.273). Girls, on the other hand, gained more. Their adult height was 161.54 cm, which was 3.64-cm greater than their target height (p=0.000).
Subgroup analysis revealed that teens with ISS were able to reach their target height. In boys, although their adult height was 0.70-cm short of the target, the SDS value indicated that adult height increased by 2.00 relative to pre-treatment HtSDS (p=0.000). In girls, their adult height was greater by 2.63 cm than the target, with the SDS increasing by 2.73 vs HtSDS (p=0.000).
On the other hand, teens without ISS achieved a height that exceeded their targets. Compared with the target, adult height increased by 2.73 cm in boys and 4.02 cm in girls. The differences between adult height SDS and HtSDS were 0.71 (p=0.003) and 0.748 (p=0.001), respectively.
In multiple linear regression analysis, significant factors that negatively influenced adult height SDS increments were baseline bone age (p=0.003), basal IGF-1 (p=0.008), and HtSDS (p=0.000).
There were no serious adverse reactions reported. One child reported a transient mild headache, and two had a small rash and mild itching at the injection site. None of these symptoms resulted in treatment interruption or withdrawal. There were no incidences of bone fracture.