Growth Hormone May Improve Heart Failure in Children
Recombinant human growth hormone (hGH) appears to help children with heart failure. Researchers in Boston note that such treatment led to improved left ventricular (LV) mass and function in adults and in animal models. To determine whether the approach would benefit pediatric patients, they studied eight children with stable LV dysfunction attributable to dilated cardiomyopathy.
Two patients withdrew from the crossover study because of declining LV function and underwent cardiac transplantation. The remaining subjects received up to 0.04 mg/kg of recombi-nant hGH, delivered by daily subcutaneous injection for six months, as well as conventional therapy.
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During treatment, LV ejection fraction improved. Six months after treatment, compared with baseline values, patients showed significant improvements in LV scores, LV shortening fraction, and end-systolic stress; insulin growth factor (IGF-1) levels also remained significantly higher. The researchers concluded that these findings, occurring after the cessation of therapy, might represent progression or perpetuation of an effect from hGH therapy.
