Abstract
Normal growth, despite GHD, has been reported after cranial radiation (CR) for leukemia (ALL). In order to analyze the characteristicsof the patients with GH peak <5 ng/ml after AITT, 2 groups were investigated: group I with 24 Gy for ALL (n=27) and group II with 30-50 Gy for face and neck tumors (n=17). All were prepubertal and received thyroxine treatment when necessary. Patients of groups I and II were similar for age at CR (5.3 ± 0.6 and 5.5 ± 0.8 yrs respectively) for interval time since CR (4.5±0.6 and 4.4±0.7 yrs) and for their mean GH response to AITT: 3.7±0.2 and 3.7±0.3 ng/ml. Growth retardation of 1SD or more was found in all patients of group II and in 17/27 cases of group I. Normal growth was observed only in 10 cases of group I in spite of GH peak to AITT < 5 ng/ml. GHD was confirmed during sleep in 2 of them : GH peak at 3.5 and 7.9 ng/ml. Weight for height was in the normal range.
In conclusion, these data show that normal prepubertal growth may occur in spite of GHD only after low radiation doses. They suggest that a residual low GH secretion may paradoxically be sufficient to promote growth in some patients by an unclear mechanism.
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Brauner, R., Rappaport, R., Fontoura, M. et al. 53 SUSTAINED GROWTH IN SPITE OF RADIATION INDUCED GHD OCCURS ONLY AFTER LOW HYPOTHALAMO-PITUITARY DOSE. Pediatr Res 24, 526 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198810000-00074
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198810000-00074