title: Should we treat children with idiopathic short stature?
abstract: The use of growth hormone (GH) to treat short children who are clearly GH-deficient is now well accepted. However, GH treatment of short children who have no currently recognizable abnormalities in their GH-insulin-like growth factor I axis remains controversial. Whether such children with so-called idiopathic short stature (ISS) should be treated with GH was the subject of an international workshop held in St.-Paul-de-Vence, France, in April 1999. This article summarizes the issues discussed at the workshop, including the definition of ISS, ethical and health-economic aspects of treatment, results from clinical trials and surveillance studies, and the use of prediction models in aiding treatment decisions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Child Life and Health, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Kelnar
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Albertsson-Wikland
authors.forename: R L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Hintz
authors.forename: M B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Ranke
authors.forename: R G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Rosenfeld
mesh_terms: D001827:Body Height; D002648:Child; D004992:Ethics, Medical; D019382:Human Growth Hormone / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D007334:Insulin-Like Growth Factor I / Q000378:metabolism; D002666:Psychology, Child; D011788:Quality of Life
chemical_list: D019382:Human Growth Hormone; D007334:Insulin-Like Growth Factor I