Serum levels of somatomedin A and growth during long-term treatment of patients with pituitary dwarfism with human growth hormone.

Eighteen patients with pituitary dwarfism were treated for 1 7/12 to 6 years with human growth hormone (hGH) at a dose of 0.19--0.62 unit (U) per kg of body weight per week. The mean increment in height was 2.0 +/- 0.4 and 8.8 +/- 0.5 cm/year before and the first year after treatment of hGH, respectively. A significant positive correlation was observed between serum levels of somatomedin A and growth rate, espcially in children with bone age below 10 and a duration of treatment of less than one year (r = 0.66, P less than 0.005). Long-term treatment with hGH was accompanied by a decreasing response. However, the serum levels of somatomedin A did not decrease significantly. Therefore, decreased growth increment in these situations was not due to decreased serum levels of somatomedin A.