Effects of recombinant human growth hormone therapy on carbohydrate, lipid, and protein metabolisms of children with Turner syndrome

Abstract

Objective: To study the effect of recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) therapy on carbohydrate, lipid and protein metabolisms of Turner syndrome (TS). Metho d s: Total 45 patients with TS admitted between Jul. 2008 and Jun. 2011 were involved in this study. All patients received the clinical evaluation of body fat, plasma lipids, proteins and oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) before and after rhGH therapy. Results : Our results indicated a significant decrease of body fat (FAT%) from 23.56±4.21 to 18.71±2.23 but no obvious change on the level of fat mass (FM) (p>0.05) was observed after rhGH therapy. We also detected significant changes on plasma high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) from (1.65±0.58 mmol/L) to (2.20±0.65 mmol/L) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDH-C) from (2.55±0.55 mmol/L) to (2.10±0.54 mmol/L) after rhGH exposure. However, no statistical significance was detected on the level of plasma triglyceride (TG), cholesterol (CHO). Interestingly, the levels of plasma retinol binding protein (RbP) (32.55±4.28mg/L), transferrin (TRF) (2.95±0.40 mg/L), serum albumin (PRE) (250.00±45.50 mg/L) and albumin (propagated) (33.58±4.25 mg/L) were significantly increased. When it goes to the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) test, there were 10 impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) cases among all patients before and after rhGH therapy. No significant change was observed on homeostasis model assessment- insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) level during rhGH intervention. Conclusion : Abnormal lipid and protein metabolisms of the children with TS can be improved with rhGH therapy for 6 months.

Body composition and bone mineral status in patients with Turner syndrome

“…In healthy adolescents, cortical bone BMD was found to increase with age, with higher annual accrual rates in girls compared to boys19. The current study demonstrated a different pattern in girls with TS, with no significant increase in BMD with increasing age and HRT did not appear to alter the rate of change in BMD with age.…”

Metabolic and Cardiac Effects of Growth Hormone Therapy in Children with Turner Syndrome

“…An earlier study investigated GH's effects on glucose, lipid, and protein metabolism in TS patients. No significant change in HOMA-IR during treatment was detected (26) . This could be explained by the short duration of GH therapy.…”

“…Other body composition indicators, such as fat and water percentages, did not show statistically significant variances between the two subgroups. A longer period of follow-up is necessary to demonstrate the impact of growth hormone treatment on several body composition markers (10,25,26) .…”

“…Patients with GH deficiency are more prone to develop lipid disorders and treatment with GH has a positive impact on the lipid profile of females with TS (29) . Several studies detected a significant decrease in total cholesterol (9) and LDL cholesterol (26) after initiating GH therapy, and a considerable rise in HDL cholesterol (26,29) , but no triglyceride alterations (26) .…”

A proposed waist-to-height ratio (WtHR) cutoff point for metabolic risk in Brazilian Turner syndrome patients

“…In addition, GH reduces blood pressure, LDL and total cholesterol, without negative effects on insulin resistance. 14,15 Gonadal dysgenesis potential cause of dyslipidemia in TS. Hormone replacement and vascular functions.…”