ESPE Abstracts (2023) 97 RFC4.3

1Dokuz Eylül University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Pediatric Endocrinology, İzmir, Turkey. 2Ege University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Pediatric Endocrinology, İzmir, Turkey


Background: Aromatase inhibitors (AIs) have been suggested to slow down estrogen-dependent skeletal maturation in pubertal boys with short stature. In the literature, few studies evaluate the efficacy and safety of AIs in boys with growth hormone deficiency (GHD). Objective: To evaluate the auxologic effects and short-term laboratory profiles of combined AI and rhGH therapy in adolescent males with GHD.

Subjects and Methods: Male subjects between the ages of 10 and 16 with GHD from two different centers were included in the study. Patients were divided into two groups: (i) those who only used recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) therapy for at least 1 year (Group I; G-I) and (ii) those who also used AI therapy (1 mg/day anastrozole or 2.5 mg/day letrozole) along with rhGH for at least 1 year (Group II; G-II).

Results: Forty-one patients (G-I, 46%; G-II, 54%) were included in the study. All of the subjects had isolated idiopathic GHD. At the beginning of the treatment, the chronological ages (CAs) of the patients in the G-I and G-II groups were 11.8 (10.9–13.7) and 12.8 (12.0–14.3) years, respectively. The ratios of bone age (BA)/CA for the two groups were 0.8 (0.8–0.9) and 1.0 (0.9–1.1), respectively (P<0.001). The daily dose of rhGH was similar in both groups (P=0.08). After the treatment, the median height SD scores of patients in the G-I group increased from -2.6 [(-3.4)-(-2.0)] to -1.8 [-2.1-(-1.3)], while subjects in the G-II group showed an increment from -1.7 [(-2.1)-(-1.1)] to -1.2 [(-1.6)-(-0.8)]. The post-therapy predicted adult height (PAH) significantly increased from baseline in all subjects in the G-I and G-II groups (P<0.001; P<0.001, respectively). There was no significant change in the ratio of BA/CA post-therapy in the G-I group (P=0.1), while there was a small but significant decrease in the G-II group (P<0.001). The growth velocities of the patients in the G-I and G-II groups were 9.1 (7.4–10.1) cm/year [1.5 (0.8–5.0) SD score] and 8.7 (7.5–9.9) cm/year [1.1 (0.3–3.1) SD score], respectively (P=0.6). While post-therapy serum testosterone concentrations were seen to increase in the G-II group, none of the patients exhibited hematocrit above 50 percent, and the fasting glucose concentrations were normal. Conclusions: AIs were observed to promote growth potential despite the advanced BA and puberty. AIs could be used as an additional therapy for pubertal boys with GHD.

Volume 97

61st Annual ESPE (ESPE 2023)

The Hague, Netherlands
21 Sep 2023 - 23 Sep 2023

European Society for Paediatric Endocrinology 

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