Human Growth Hormone Therapy for Children

According to the Human Growth Hormone Foundation, 10,000 to 15,000 children in the United States have a deficiency of human growth hormone. This hormone is a protein that is manufactured by the pituitary gland and is necessary for a child's growth. A deficiency occurs when the hormone is either missing or underproduced. The job of human growth hormone is to stimulate body tissue growth.

Diagnosis of a Human Growth Hormone Deficiency

• Generally, a child with human growth hormone deficiency is small when compared to peers. Plotting the child's growth on a growth chart, a doctor may notice that a child's growth rate has either stalled or decreased over time. If a problem is detected, the child should be referred to a pediatric endocrinologist for further evaluation. Various blood tests over a period of time are used to determine if hormone levels are deficient.

How Is Human Growth Deficiency Treated?

• A child with human growth hormone deficiency should be treated by a pediatric endocrinologist. Human growth hormone deficiency is generally treated by injecting synthetic human growth hormone into the child three to seven times per week as determined by the treating physician.

Length of Treatment

• Generally, several months pass before the treatment's effects can be seen. Treatment usually is conducted over several years and continues until the child reaches a suitable adult height.

Other Hormone Deficiencies

• Many times other hormone deficiencies exist along with human growth hormone deficiency. In such cases, medications will be used in addition to the injections in order to replace the other missing hormones.

Other Recommendations

• All children, whether they have a human growth hormone deficiency or not, need enough rest and balanced nutrition to experience normal growth.