What is the best age to start growth hormone treatment

The best age to start growth hormone therapy is the age at which a growth hormone deficiency was detected, which will improve the probability of normal child development compared to his peers.

In case of adults, they should start the growth hormone replacement therapy after a GH deficiency has been detected (most often due to a brain injury or poisoning, which caused a pituitary gland dysfunction). And if the growth hormone deficiency in children can be characterized by too low growth dynamics compared to the peers, the signs of HG deficiency in adults include: obesity, decreased bone density, frequent bone fractures, decreased sex drive, low energy level, muscle mass loss, muscle weakness, wrinkles, poor skin quality, poor immune system functioning, etc.

Growth hormone (also known as somatotropin or GH) is one of many hormones produced by the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland. The pituitary gland produces it in a dose of about 0.5 mg/day and releases it into the bloodstream in a pulsatile manner (most often during the night). The main goal of somatotropin is to stimulate growth of the body. How does GH do this? Growth hormone activates the body’s energy reserves, accelerates the breakdown of spare fats and glycogen. It also enhances the absorption of calcium and phosphate needed for bone building, as well as protein synthesis and other anabolic processes. During pubertal growth spurt, growth hormone is responsible for the elongation of cartilage of the epiphyseal parts of long bones. This is why children in the pubertal period grow so intensively. An underactive pituitary gland can cause low growth in a child.

Childs grow dynamic is very individual and depends on many factors – lifestyle, physical activity, diet, amount of sleep, exposure to stress and above all – genes. It is in the genes that the information on each physical and biological feature of the body is written. It is genes that decide about the color of your eyes, skin, hair and height. So do not panic when you see that your child is a bit shorter than his schoolmates.

The problem arises when we notice a difference between the child’s earlier and current growth. We should be alarmed if the child’s growth suddenly stops and falls on the percentile grid. By definition, short stature occurs when the child’s height is below the 3rd percentile. This situation always requires the intervention of a specialist – paediatric endocrinologist.

Somatotropin deficiency is a relatively rare cause of low growth among children. Most toddlers have neither endocrine disorders nor genetic defects. They are short because their parents or grandparents are also short, and they simply did not have anyone to inherit high height from. Moreover, in endocrinology, there is a concept of constitutional delay of growth and maturation. It means temporary growth deficiency and affects about 0.6-2% of children, mostly boys. CSE is characterized by lower growth rate, longer growth period and delayed puberty. Constitutional short stature is familial and should not be equated with a disease.

The growth process may be impaired by all kinds of chronic diseases: heart, kidney, thyroid, respiratory system diseases such as severe bronchial asthma, cystic fibrosis and gastrointestinal diseases such as Crohn’s disease. Low growth may also mean that the child does not absorb nutrients properly. This happens, for example, in the course of celiac disease – a disease in which there is a loss of intestinal villi responsible for absorption of nutrients. Celiac disease has a genetic background, and people who suffer from it must follow a gluten-free diet, because the gluten found in food is the factor that damages the intestinal mucosa. Growth deficiency can also be linked to some kind of birth defect syndrome or genetic mutation.