Night sleep EEG and daytime sleep propensity in adult hypopituitary patients with growth hormone deficiency before and after six months of growth hormone replacement.

What Was Tested

The paper reports a study of Exogenous HGH, sermorelin & older GHRPs (why they're passed over), published as a randomized controlled trial.

No reports exist about objective measures of daytime sleepiness in GH deficient patients before and during GH-therapy.

To assess the effects of GH on nocturnal and daytime sleep in adult patients with GHD before and during recombinant human GH (rhGH, Somatropin) replacement therapy.

Why It Was Studied

It is unclear whether these symptoms are primarily due to GH-deficiency and/or secondary to GHD related sleep impairments.

Bi-directional interactions between the somatotropic system and human sleep patterns are well established.

Who Took Part

The abstract describes 4 women taking part.

The age groups tagged for this paper are adults and middle-aged adults, both men and women.

Eighteen adult patients with GHD (4 women and 14 men) participated in the study.

In all patients from this group, only the effects of the first 6 months of GH treatment were assessed.

How the Study Was Run

In design terms this was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled and crossover study.

The women were allocated by chance, so the Exogenous HGH, sermorelin & older GHRPs (why they're passed over) group and the comparison group should start out alike.

Blinding on both sides kept the women and researchers unaware of who received Exogenous HGH, sermorelin & older GHRPs (why they're passed over).

The comparison arm used a placebo, so changes seen with Exogenous HGH, sermorelin & older GHRPs (why they're passed over) could be set against what happens without it.

Each person switched between Exogenous HGH, sermorelin & older GHRPs (why they're passed over) and the comparison at some point, usually with a gap in between.

Mean age at the beginning of the study was 48.5 years (range 27-64 years).

What Was Measured

It is unclear whether these symptoms are primarily due to GH-deficiency and/or secondary to GHD related sleep impairments.

The subject headings attached to it are Adenoma, Craniopharyngioma, Electroencephalography, Growth Hormone, Hormone Replacement Therapy, Human Growth Hormone and Hypopituitarism.

What This Means in Plain Language

The paper is a randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study of Exogenous HGH, sermorelin & older GHRPs (why they're passed over) in 4 women.

With fewer than 40 people, it is a small study, so it is better read as an early signal for further research than as a settled answer.

Results are reported in around 10 sentences of the abstract; we leave them to the paper itself rather than summarise them.

The publication is from 2005 (Psychoneuroendocrinology), a journal based in England.

More context: the Exogenous HGH, sermorelin & older GHRPs (why they're passed over) compound page, all human trials.