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E van der Veen

Publications and source records attributed to E van der Veen.

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Intestinal calcium absorption and bone metabolism in young adult men with childhood-onset growth hormone deficiency.

Suboptimal growth hormone (GH) replacement therapy during childhood is a major cause of osteopenia in young adults with childhood-onset GH deficiency (CO-GHD). This is primarily attributed to reduced bone formation in childhood. It is currently not known whether GHD also has adverse effects on bone metabolism in adult life. To examine the impact of GHD on calcium and bone metabolism in adults, we evaluated 50 men with CO pituitary failure at a mean age of 28.2+/-4.5 years, i.e., 8.8+/-4.1 years after the discontinuation of previous GH treatment for short stature. Thirty-three patients had multiple pituitary hormone deficiencies (MPHD) for which they received conventional replacement therapy, seventeen patients had isolated GHD (IGHD), and forty-nine age-matched men served as controls. Intestinal calcium absorption, serum calcium concentration, serum phosphate levels, and renal calcium and phosphate excretion were normal in IGHD and MPHD patients. IGHD patients had marginally elevated serum levels of the carboxy-terminal cross-linked telopeptide of type I collagen (ICTP: 5.0+/-1.2 vs. 4.2+/-1.2 microg/l, p < 0.05), but other indices of bone turnover were normal. In contrast, MPHD patients had reduced levels of the carboxy-terminal propeptide of type I procollagen (PICP: 137+/-76 vs. 179+/-72 microg/l, p < 0.01), elevated serum ICTP levels (6.0+/-3.8 vs. 4.2+/-1.2 microg/l, p < 0.001), and reduced serum 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D levels (55.1+/-16.7 vs. 73.0+/-23.0 pmol/l, p < 0.001). Multivariate regression analysis showed that the serum levels of bone resorption and bone formation markers in MPHD patients were correlated with the hydrocortisone, thyroxine, and testosterone replacement doses. There was no relationship with serum insulin-like growth factor I concentration. Panhypopituitary adults receiving conventional hormone replacement therapy are at risk to develop osteopenia either caused by reduced bone formation or by increased bone resorption activity. Predominantly, these abnormalities result from nonoptimal thyroid, gonadal, or adrenal hormone replacement therapy. GHD is not an important factor. In adults, GHD does not adversely affect intestinal calcium absorption or bone formation activity. Bone resorption activity may be slightly higher than normal, but the abnormality is too small to expect substantial bone loss as a consequence of GHD.

Adult↗

Guidelines for optimizing growth hormone replacement therapy in adults.

To minimize the rate of side-effects, a retrospective analysis of 28 studies of GH replacement therapy in adults indicates that the maintenance dose should usually not exceed 1.0 IU/m2/day (about 1.5-2.0 IU/day) in GHD patients 40-60 years old, or 1.5 IU/m2/day (about 2.5-3.0 IU/day) in GHD patients 20-40 years old. GHD women may tolerate, and in fact may need, higher replacement doses, though this issue requires further investigation. GH treatment should be started at a low dose, i.e. about 1.0 IU/day, and increased gradually, by about 0.5 IU per month, until the target dose is reached. In the absence of side-effects, the GH dose may be either too low, adequate, or too high. Measurement of GH-dependent serum markers provides the most promising approach to detect both GH depletion and excess, with serum IGF-I concentration the current method of choice. Clinical awareness of symptoms of GH excess remains important, however, particularly in patients with IGF-I levels in the high normal range.

Adult↗

Monitoring of growth hormone replacement therapy in adults, based on measurement of serum markers.

The optimal dose for GH replacement therapy in GH-deficient (GHD) adults is not known, nor is there a consensus as to which method is the most appropriate for the monitoring of treatment. To establish a general guideline for GH replacement therapy in adults, we evaluated the relationship between the administered GH dose and the achieved serum levels of three GH-dependent serum markers. Serum levels of insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I), IGF-binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3), and the acid-labile subunit (ALS) were measured in 46 GHD men participating in a 1-yr, double blind, and placebo-controlled dose-response study. The doses of recombinant human GH ranged from 0.33-3.0 IU/m(2)-day. During GH treatment, dose reduction was necessary because of side-effects in 18 of 46 patients, i.e. in 18% of the patients receiving a maintenance dose of 1 IU/M(2)-day, in 35% of the patients receiving a dose of 2 IU/m(2)-day, and in 67% of the patients receiving a dose of 3 IU/M(2)-day. In the untreated state, serum levels of all three markers were below the normal range in 90% of the patients. The rise in serum marker concentrations during the first month of treatment was dose dependent. Significant increases in IGF-I, IGFBP-3, and ALS levels were observed with a dose as low as 0.33 IU/M(2)-day. The minimal GH dose required for normalization of the serum IGF-I concentration was 0.66 IU/M(2)-day, and it was 1.0 IU/M(2)-day for ALS and IGFBP-3. In patients receiving 2.0 IU/M(2)-day, the mean serum IGF-I concentration rose to an abnormally high level, whereas at this dose, the mean IGFBP-3 and ALS levels were not different from normal. The lower sensitivity of IGFBP-3 and ALS to GH doses in the high range was also apparent during long term treatment. The number of patients who developed IGFBP-3 or ALS levels that exceeded the upper normal limit was substantially smaller than the number of patients with elevated IGF-I concentrations (2, 8, and 19 of 46 patients, respectively). In conclusion, serum IGF-I appears to be the preferred biochemical marker for the detection of GH excess in adults receiving GH replacement therapy, because it is more sensitive than IGFBP-3 and ALS to GH doses in the high range. If normalization of the serum IGF-I concentration is taken as the criterion for optimal GH replacement therapy, the predicted optimal GH dose for GHD men 20 - 40 yr old is 1.4 IU/M(2)-day, and the 95% confidence interval is 1.2-1.6 IU/M(2)-day.

Adult↗

Changes in subcutaneous and visceral fat mass during growth hormone replacement therapy in adult men.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the degree of subcutaneous and intraabdominal fat accumulation in growth hormone (GH) deficient adult men, and to evaluate the lipolytic effects of GH replacement therapy. DESIGN: Placebo-controlled, double-blind, dose-response study. All patients, including those initially starting on placebo, received GH for a period of one year. SUBJECTS: 46 adult men (mean age 28.0 +/- 4.5 y) with childhood-onset GH deficiency (GHD). MEASUREMENTS: Subcutaneous fat mass and fat distribution was assessed by measurement of skinfold thicknesses at seven different sites. Intraabdominal fat mass was assessed by computerized tomography (CT). Reference values were obtained from age- and sex-matched controls with a normal body mass index. RESULTS: The sum of skinfolds (SKFs) was 75% (95% CI: 52-98%) higher, and intraabdominal fat area was 84% (95% CI: 45-122%) greater in GHD patients than in age- and sex-matched controls. Patients with multiple pituitary hormone deficiencies (MPHD, n = 30), who were all receiving conventional hormone replacement therapy, were more obese than patients with isolated GHD (IGHD, n = 16). This difference was attributed to a more severe impairment in GH secretion, as well as to the lower androgen levels in patients with MPHD. GH treatment was associated with a gradual decline in subcutaneous fat that continued for approximately six months. Thereafter, a new steady-state was reached. The GH-induced decline in subcutaneous and intraabdominal fat was dose-dependent (r = 0.84, p < 0.001 and r = 0.52, p < 0.001, respectively). The efficacy of GH treatment was similar to IGHD and MPHD patients. Optimal GH replacement, defined as treatment resulting in normalization of serum insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) concentration, was achieved in 25 patients. In this subgroup the sum of SKFs decreased by 27% (95% CI: 22-32%) and intraabdominal fat was reduced by 47% (95% CI: 38-57%). CONCLUSION: We conclude that subcutaneous as well as intraabdominal fat mass are abnormally high in GHD men, and that GH treatment with doses within the physiological range profoundly reduces the sizes of both fat compartments. In addition, GH replacement therapy was found to be equally effective in men with IGHD as in those with MPHD.

Adipose Tissue↗

The optimal growth hormone replacement dose in adults, derived from bioimpedance analysis.

The prevalence of clinical signs and symptoms related to fluid retention is high in most studies evaluating the efficacy of GH treatment in GH-deficient (GHD) adults. This may be a consequence of supraphysiological GH replacement. To examine whether fluid retention is a dose-related phenomenon, we evaluated the impact of various GH substitution doses on body fluid status in 46 GHD men participating in a 1-yr, double blind, and placebo-controlled study. The patients were randomized to receive either placebo (n = 13) or GH in a dose of 1 (n = 11), 2 (n = 10), or 3 (n = 12) IU/m2.day, respectively. Treatment was started at one third of the predetermined dose and was subsequently increased by another third every month until the maintenance dose was reached. Tissue hydration was assessed by means of electrical impedance measurements. Normal values were obtained from 128 age- and sex-matched controls. In the untreated GHD state, whole body resistance was abnormally high (observed, 642 +/- 82 omega; predicted, 550 +/- 31 omega; P < 0.001). This was mainly caused by an increase in specific resistance of the lean body as a consequence of a reduction in extracellular water (ECW). The first month of GH treatment was associated with a sharp decline in electrical resistance that was attributed to an increase in ECW. Whole body resistance reached its nadir after 3 months of treatment (517 +/- 72 omega, i.e. 19.6 +/- 6.5% lower than before treatment; P < 0.001) and did not change significantly thereafter. The GH-induced changes in body resistance were dose dependent. A significant decrease was observed with a dose as low as 0.33 IU/m2.day (P < 0.005). However, whole body resistance remained higher than normal in patients receiving less than 0.67 IU/m2.day (P = 0.05). Abnormally low resistance values, indicative of overhydration, were observed in patients receiving doses equal to or higher than 2 IU/m2.day (P < 0.005). Regression analysis of the pooled data showed that GH replacement in a dose of 1.10 IU/m2.day (95% confidence interval, 0.85-1.45 IU/m2.day) resulted in a normalization of whole body resistance. In conclusion, GH replacement therapy in adults rapidly corrects the preexisting deficit in ECW. This rehydration process is dose dependent and may result in a substantial weight gain.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Adult↗