[New approaches in the treatment of short stature].
Over the past years, the efforts to improve the final height of children with short stature has yielded new modalities of therapy. New types of injection devices, mainly ready-to-use injection pens with multi-dose vials of reconstituted growth hormone (GH), have made the treatment technically easier and less stressful for the patients. A new type of slow-release GH injected once or twice a month has recently been studied. In addition, several types of synthetic GH-secretagogues were examined, with the advantage of being introduced by the oral or nasal route. The recognition of the pivotal role of estrogens in skeletal maturation and subsequent growth arrest, was the basis for the use of aromatase inhibitor in a pioneering study, with promising results. We have concluded the review with an update on the benefit of GH therapy in children with normal short stature, based on 12 studies that provided data on the final height of these children.
Zung
Amnon
A
Pediatric Endocrine Unit, Kaplan Medical Center, Rehovot, Israel.
Zadik
Zvi
Z
D002648:Child; D003692:Delayed-Action Preparations; D004392:Dwarfism / Q000628:therapy; D006130:Growth Disorders / Q000628:therapy*; D020249:Hormone Replacement Therapy; D019382:Human Growth Hormone / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans
D003692:Delayed-Action Preparations; D019382:Human Growth Hormone