Children with idiopathic short stature and skeletal deformities should be tested for the NPR2 mutation, recommend Chinese researchers who believe that children with heterozygous mutations may benefit from recombinant human growth hormone therapy.
A single measurement of plasma levels of a fragment of type X collagen (Collagen X bioMarker) may give an instant picture of how fast a child is growing, say researchers.
The designation “Idiopathic short stature” was first used in the 1980s as a description for short children who had normal growth hormone secretion and otherwise unexplained short stature.
Rare copy number variants have been identified in a study of children who have growth hormone insensitivity or insulin-like growth factor-1 insensitivity, shedding light on the genetic basis of their conditions
Less than 10% of brain magnetic resonance imaging scans in children with isolated growth hormone deficiency reveal a pathological cause, say researchers.
Children who receive total body irradiation or craniospinal radiation for cancer may have a reduced response to growth hormone therapy if they later require it, say researchers.
Receiving treatment with recombinant human growth hormone in childhood is unlikely to be associated with an increased risk for mortality in the long term, show the results of the full SAGhE cohort.
Girls with Turner syndrome are less prepared for transition to adult medical care than other patients with long-term health issues and may benefit from additional support, say Austrian researchers.
Severe growth hormone deficiency can be detected with high accuracy using newborn screening cards, suggest researchers who recommend a diagnostic growth hormone cutoff of less than 7 µg/L.
Children with idiopathic growth hormone deficiency should be retested at mid-puberty, say researchers who found a substantial proportion no longer required growth hormone treatment.
