Growth hormone substitution in adult growth hormone-deficient men augments androgen effects on the skin.

What Was Tested

This randomized controlled trial looks at Exogenous HGH, sermorelin & older GHRPs (why they're passed over).

The sexual hair scores are subnormal in these patients, even in the presence of normal serum androgen levels.

Who Took Part

The abstract describes 46 patients taking part.

By PubMed's age tags, the people studied were adults, men only.

Forty-six adult men with childhood-onset of GH deficiency of whom 25 were androgen deficient and received replacement.

Of the 46 patients, 33 started immediately with GH administration; the remaining 13 received placebo for the first 6 months followed by GH for the next 6 months.

How the Study Was Run

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

As a double-blind Exogenous HGH, sermorelin & older GHRPs (why they're passed over) study, the assignments were hidden from both participants and investigators until the end.

Some patients received a placebo instead of Exogenous HGH, sermorelin & older GHRPs (why they're passed over), giving a reference point.

In the crossover set-up each of the patients took both Exogenous HGH, sermorelin & older GHRPs (why they're passed over) and the comparison in turn, acting as their own control.

Sixty-one age-matched healthy men with normal height and serum concentrations of IGF-I served as a comparison group.

Hair scores at 13 defined body regions were assessed before, and after 6 and 12 months of the intervention.

At the same time levels of IGF-I, dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate, androstenedione, dihydrotestosterone (DHT), testosterone and sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) were measured.

From the latter two, the free androgen index (FAI) was calculated.

What Was Measured

PubMed files the paper under topics including Androgens, Androstenedione, Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate, Dihydrotestosterone, Growth Hormone, Hair and Human Growth Hormone.

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 46 patients.

Results are reported in around 6 sentences of the abstract; we leave them to the paper itself rather than summarise them.

The publication is from 1997 (Clinical endocrinology), a journal based in England.

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