Clinical StudiesA Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-controlled Study of Growth Hormone in the Treatment of Fibromyalgia 1
Section snippets
Methods
This study was approved by the ethics committee of the Oregon Health Sciences University and performed according to their guidelines. All subjects gave their informed written consent.
Results
Fifty patients were enrolled according to the protocol guidelines. Forty-five patients completed all 9 months of study. The two treatment groups were similar in all major demographic features (Table 1). Eighteen subjects in the placebo group and 11 patients in the growth hormone group fulfilled modified criteria for the chronic fatigue syndrome [22]. Three patients in the growth hormone group were discontinued, 2 for medical reasons and 1 for noncompliance. Two patients receiving placebo were
Discussion
We assessed the efficacy of recombinant human growth hormone in the treatment of fibromyalgia patients. The treated group experienced significant improvement after 9 months of treatment in symptoms, as measured by the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire, and signs, as measured by the tender point score. No patient had a complete remission of symptoms, although several patients experienced an impressive improvement in their functional ability. In general there was a lag of about 6 months before
References (30)
- et al.
Fibromyalgia syndrome, a problem of tautology
Lancet
(1993) Hyperalgesia and expanded receptive fields
Pain
(1992)Sleep, neuroimmune and neuroendocrine functions in fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome
Adv Neuroimmunol
(1995)- et al.
Effects of growth hormone substitution on mental performance in adults with growth hormone deficiencya pilot study
Psychoneuroendocrinology
(1986) - et al.
A new stress-related syndrome of growth failure and hyperphagia in children, associated with reversibility of growth-hormone insufficiency
Lancet
(1996) - et al.
The American College of Rheumatology 1990 criteria for the classification of fibromyalgiareport of the Multicenter Criteria Committee
Arthritis Rheum
(1990) - et al.
Population study of tender point counts and pain as evidence of fibromyalgia
BMJ
(1994) - et al.
Abnormal responses to electrocutaneous stimulation in fibromyalgia
J Rheumatol
(1993) - et al.
The fibromyalgia impact questionnairedevelopment and validation
J Rheumatol
(1991) - et al.
Psychiatric diagnoses in patients with fibromyalgia are related to health care-seeking behavior rather than to illness
Arthritis Rheum
(1996)
Musculosketal symptoms and non-REM sleep disturbance in patients with “fibrositis syndrome” and healthy subjects
Psychosom Med
Beyond fibromyalgiaideas on etiology and treatment
J Rheumatol
Low levels of somatomedin C in patients with the fibromyalgia syndrome. A possible link between sleep and muscle pain
Arthritis Rheum
The growth hormone deficiency syndrome in adults
Clin Endocrinol
The development, reliability and validity of a disease specific quality of life model for adults with growth hormone deficiency
Clin Endocrinol (Oxf)
Cited by (232)
Hormonal changes in veterans with Gulf War Illness
2023, Life SciencesMetabolic and quality of life effects of growth hormone replacement in patients with TBI and AGHD: A pilot study
2023, Growth Hormone and IGF ResearchFibromyalgia
2015, Disease-a-MonthInsulin-like Growth Factor-1 (IGF-1) Related Drugs in Pain Management
2023, Pharmaceuticals
- 1
Supported in part by a research grant from Genentech, Inc., San Francisco.