Abstract
IMPORTANCE: Approximately 2% of children are defined as having short stature. Deciding when to pursue recombinant human growth hormone therapy to increase adult height is controversial. OBJECTIVE: To review the management of children with idiopathic short stature, including diagnostic evaluation and therapeutic options. EVIDENCE REVIEW: Systematic literature search of PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library databases. For height outcome, articles were limited to studies reporting adult height and to systematic reviews. FINDINGS: Recombinant human growth hormone therapy of children with idiopathic short stature increases height in some children. The estimated mean gain in adult height is 5.2 cm (2 in). The cost-benefit ratio is controversial. Treatment with growth hormone appears safe in the short term, while data on long-term effects are limited because studies of long-term efficacy were not powered to determine safety. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Growth hormone treatment may be considered in some children with idiopathic short stature.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 1787-1796 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association |
Volume | 311 |
Issue number | 17 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - May 7 2014 |
Externally published | Yes |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Medicine