Frequently asked questions
Growth hormone treatment in adults
What should I expect from treatment?
Growth hormone replacement therapy has a number of effects. Usually, body composition will begin to change as fat is lost or redistributed. These changes are usually accompanied by an improvement in general wellbeing.
In the long-term, treatment with growth hormone has been shown to increase the density of bones and reduce the amount of harmful cholesterol in the blood.
Are there any side-effects from growth hormone replacement therapy?
Growth hormone has been used for 40 years to treat growth problems in children and for 10 years in adults. Growth hormone used in therapy is identical to growth hormone produced in the human body.
Growth hormone treatment is generally well-tolerated, probably because the synthetic version is identical to the natural hormone. Children tend to experience fewer side effects than adults. You may experience slight swelling in your feet or ankles, numbness or tingling of your hands and feet (like pins and needles) or mild muscle or joint pain. These effects are most likely to occur at the start of treatment and often disappear after a few days.
Very rarely, growth hormone causes a headache that does not go away. You should report this to your doctor or specialist nurse; the headache will usually clear if your dose of growth hormone is reduced temporarily. If you are worried about any side effects you should ask your doctor or specialist nurse.
Why do adults become deficient in growth hormone?
Some children with growth hormone deficiency will continue to have growth hormone deficiency in adult life. Adults may develop growth hormone deficiency as a result of injuries to the pituitary gland, for example as a result of treatment for brain tumours or traffic accidents.
What is the role of growth hormone in adults?
Adults continue to produce growth hormone although in smaller amounts than children do. Even though growth hormone doesn’t make adults grow taller, it has a number of positive effects in adults. These are to do with maintaining the normal body proportions, good bone quality and good mood.
Will it make me feel unwell?
Not usually, because you are putting back into your body what you are missing. If you have any unusual feelings after starting treatment that don’t go away it is always best to tell your doctor or nurse about them.
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Last updated: April 2008
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