Short Children and Growth Hormone
1 Division of Pediatric Endocrinology, Department of Pediatrics, The University of Texas, Health Science Center at San Antonio, 7703 Floyd Curl Drive, San Antonio, TX 78284
To the Editor.
The article by Bright et al1 was a provocative description of two subjects with short stature, normal growth hormone (GH) responses to provocative testing, and low somatomedin-C (SM-C) concentrations, which increased after administration of GH. The authors conclude that the short stature in these individuals may be due to a biologically inactive GH molecule or to decreased dose responsiveness to GH of SM-producing cells. Their data also seem compatible with a third possibility: normal short children respond to GH administration with increases in SM-C plasma concentrations and growth rates.




