Plasma Growth Hormone and Plasma 11-OHCS in Corticosteroid Treated Patients

Abstract

Plasma growth hormone and 11-OHCS in response to insulin hypoglycemia were determined simultaneously in corticosteroid treated patients. Long-term daily administration of corticosteroids, more than 800 tablets and longer than 6 months, had a marked inhibitory effect on GH secretion. Lower doses or shorter term administration on daily basis resulted in less suppression. Intermittent administration with various schedules usually had a less inhibitory effect than daily administration. In intermittently administered patients, better responses were observed in a group tested on off-day than in a group tested on on-day of corticosteroids. A single administration of 1-8 mg of dexamethasone to normal subjects at a midnight before a test had a variable effect on GH secretion. Plasma GH responses to arginine infusion were also suppressed by long-term and high-dose administration of corticosteroids. The suppression of GH seemed to go parallel with that of pituitary-adrenal axis determined by plasma 11-OHCS in corticosteroid treated patients. © 1970, Tohoku University Medical Press. All rights reserved.