Window Treatments

Growth hormone (GH) is a protein hormone secreted by the pituitary gland which stimulates growth and cell reproduction. In the past growth hormone was extracted from human pituitary glands and given to deficient children. more...

Home
Building & Hardware
Dining & Bar
Electrical & Solar
Food & Wine
Heating, Cooling & Air
Home Security
Kitchen
Major Appliances
Outdoor Power Equipment
Plumbing & Fixtures
Tools
Vacuum Cleaners &...
Wholesale Lots
Window Treatments
Blinds
Children's Window Treatments
Curtain Rods, Hardware
Curtains, Drapes
Other Window Treatments
Roman Shades
Shades
Sheers
Shutters
Valances
Window Scarves
Window Treatment Sets

GH is now produced synthetically and given to both children and adults for a variety of reasons. GH therapy has been a focus of social and ethical controversies for 50 years.

This article describes the history of GH treatment, current uses, risks, and social controversies arising from GH use. Other articles describe GH physiology, diseases of GH excess (acromegaly and pituitary gigantism), deficiency, the recent phenomenon of HGH controversies, and growth hormone for cows.

Terminology and glossary

Growth hormone (GH) is also called somatotropin (British: somatotrophin). The human form of growth hormone is known as human growth hormone, or hGH (similarly ovine growth hormone is abbreviated oGH). GH can refer either to the natural hormone produced by the pituitary (somatotropin), or biosynthetic GH for therapy (somatropin).

HGH is an abbreviation sometimes used for counterfeit or fake "growth hormone" products. See HGH controversies for a fuller discussion of the origins and changing usages of HGH.

Cadaver growth hormone is the unappetizing term for GH extracted from human pituitary glands between 1960 and 1985 for therapy of deficient children. In the U.S., cadaver GH is also referred to as NPA growth hormone (National Pituitary Agency). In 1985 it was associated with the development of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, and was withdrawn from use.

rhGH refers to recombinant human growth hormone (somatropin). It contains the identical amino acid sequence of human GH and was for a time referred to as "natural sequence" GH. It is the only synthetic GH commercially available for human use today.

Coincidentally, rhGH also refers to rhesus monkey GH, using the accepted naming convention. Rhesus growth hormone was never used by physicians to treat human patients, but rhesus GH was part of the lore of the underground anabolic steroid community in those years and fraudulent versions may have been bought and sold in gyms.

met-GH refers to methionyl-growth hormone. This was the first recombinant GH product marketed (Protropin by Genentech). It had the same amino acid sequence as human GH with an extra methionine at the end of the chain to facilitate the manufacturing process. It was discontinued in the late 1990s.

rBST refers to recombinant bovine somatropin (cow growth hormone), or more properly, recombinant bovine GH (rbGH).

Treatment of GH deficiency in children

Growth hormone deficiency is treated by replacing GH. All GH prescribed in North America, Europe, and most of the rest of the world is a synthetic copy of human GH, manufactured by recombinant DNA technology. As GH is a large protein molecule, it must be injected into subcutaneous tissue or muscle to get it into the blood. Nearly painless insulin syringes make this less trying than is usually anticipated but perceived discomfort is a subjective value.

Read more at Wikipedia.org