Growth Hormone in Aging
- PMID: 25905386
- Bookshelf ID: NBK279163
Growth Hormone in Aging
Excerpt
Growth hormone (GH) serves important roles in adult life, including maintenance of lean body mass and bone mass, promoting lipolysis, thereby limiting visceral adiposity, and regulating carbohydrate metabolism, cardiovascular system function, aerobic exercise capacity, and cognitive function. Younger adults with growth hormone deficiency (AGHD) exhibit abnormalities in body composition, physical and cognitive function, and quality of life which are reversed by GH replacement therapy. With advancing age GH production declines, paralleled by physical and functional alterations similar to those of AGHD; however, the degree to which the decrease in GH contributes to these age-related changes is unknown. Seemingly in opposition to the theory that the diminished GH secretion of older age is a net detriment are observations that animal models of congenital GH deficiency have remarkably increased life span and humans with congenital GH deficiency may have decreased rates of age-related diseases such as diabetes and cancer. Several short-term studies aiming to increase GH in older adults by a variety of interventions including exercise, administration of GH, or treatment with GH secretagogues have demonstrated consistent effects to improve body composition, yet inconsistent effects on physical and cognitive function. While side effects of GH administration in older adults include edema, arthralgias, and elevated blood glucose, data regarding the possible long-term effects on “hard end points” such as risk of fractures, cancer, cardiovascular disease, life expectancy, and mortality are lacking. For complete coverage of all related areas of Endocrinology, please visit our on-line FREE web-text,
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Sections
- ABSTRACT
- INTRODUCTION
- AGE-RELATED CHANGES IN GROWTH HORMONE SECRETION
- POTENTIAL MECHANISMS UNDERLYING THE DECLINE IN GH SECRETION WITH AGE
- DECREASE IN GH IN NORMAL AGING: SIMILARITIES WITH AND DIFFERENCES FROM ADULT GROWTH HORMONE DEFICIENCY
- CLINICAL CONSEQUENCES OF AGE-RELATED DECREASE IN GH SECRETION
- GROWTH HORMONE IN AGING: CAVEATS REGARDING LONGEVITY
- GROWTH HORMONE THERAPY IN NORMAL AGING
- GROWTH HORMONE RELEASING HORMONE (GHRH) AND GROWTH HORMONE SECRETAGOGUES (GHS)
- CONCLUSIONS
- REFERENCES
References
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