Growth hormone deficiency. Treatment with growth hormone and body composition.

Increased fat mass, decreased lean mass, muscular mass and bone mineral density are characteristic of the body composition in GH deficiency, GH treatment reverses these abnormalities. Body composition was determined in 20 young adults with GHD diagnosed in childhood, whose GH treatment was stopped 1 year earlier. Reevaluation of GH secretion in these patients showed that 12 remained GH deficient (confirmed GHD) while eight recovered normal GH secretion (transient GHD). One year after stopping the GH treatment, patients with confirmed GHD showed an increased fat mass as compared with value at the end of the treatment; in addition a decreased bone mineral content was observed in the patients with low physical activity. There was no increased fat mass in transient GHD; however, these patients presented with low bone mineral content, as previously reported in adults with history of delayed growth and adolescence.