Objectives: Impaired longitudinal growth and poor weight gain are common and important problems in children with cystic fibrosis. This study evaluates the hy pothesis that adjunctive growth hormone (GH) therapy augments the growth respons e to nutritional supplementation. Study design: We recruited 18 prepubertal chil dren who received enteral nutritional supplementation for at least 2 years befor e enrollment. Nine were randomly assigned to receive no GH for 1 year, followed by 1 year of GH. Nine were randomly assigned to receive 1 year of GH followed by a second year of GH. Measurements included height, weight, pulmonary function, lean tissue mass, bone mineral content, hospitalizations, outpatient antibiotic use, and caloric intake. Results: Growth hormone resulted in significant improve ment in height, weight, bone mineral content, lean tissue mass, and number of ho spitalizations. Pulmonary function was similar at baseline. Absolute forced vita l capacity and forced expiratory volume in 1 minute significantly increased in G H treatment, but there was no significant change in percent predicted pulmonary function. Caloric intake was similar in both groups during both years. Conclusio ns: These results suggest that GH is a useful for enhancing growth in children w ith cystic fibrosis receiving enteral nutritional supplementation.
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