Growth after discontinuation of recombinant human growth hormone therapy in children with chronic renal insufficiency. The Genentech Cooperative Study Group.

What Was Tested

Researchers studied Exogenous HGH, sermorelin & older GHRPs (why they're passed over) in this randomized controlled trial publication.

The impact of a pause in treatment with recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) during the course of chronic renal insufficiency (CRI) once target height (50th percentile for mid-parental height) is reached and the impact of cessation of rhGH treatment after successful renal transplantation were evaluated.

Prepubertal patients with CRI included in a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial who either reached target height or received a renal transplant, or both, were included in this report.

Patients in the placebo group may have initiated pubertal development at the time rhGH treatment was begun.

Who Took Part

According to the abstract, 22 patients were involved.

PubMed indexes the participants as young children and children, both men and women.

Growth velocity (measured in centimeters per year) and standardized height score (SDS) in 22 patients who had a pause in rhGH therapy after attainment of target height were evaluated serially before and after the pause, and 30 patients, 4 of whom were also included in the pause group, who discontinued rhGH therapy at the time of transplantation were followed as long as 68 months after transplantation.

How the Study Was Run

The researchers set it up as a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled and multicenter study.

The patients 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.

Neither the patients nor the staff measuring them knew who was on Exogenous HGH, sermorelin & older GHRPs (why they're passed over), so expectations could not easily colour the readings.

A placebo (an inactive look-alike) gave the Exogenous HGH, sermorelin & older GHRPs (why they're passed over) group a baseline to be compared against.

Running at several centres spread the Exogenous HGH, sermorelin & older GHRPs (why they're passed over) study over different clinics and patient groups.

What Was Measured

Topics PubMed links to this paper include Body Height, Human Growth Hormone, Kidney Failure, Chronic, Kidney Transplantation, Recombinant Proteins and Retreatment.

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 22 patients.

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.

Its findings take up roughly 6 sentences of the abstract and are left out here on purpose; the source paper is the place to read them.

The publication is from 1996 (The Journal of pediatrics), a journal based in United States.

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