Growth hormone injections

I don't have experience with this personally, but I know of others on the site who have and will offer suggestions as they can. Let us know how things work out.

Tracy

Hi,

My children were born at 25 weeks and also had bone density and room for growth tests. They have no genetic disorders either. They were between 1 lb 2 oz and 1 lb 8 oz at birth. A little more history, they were quadruplets.

That said, I do not think there is an easy answer to this question. However it is constantly asked by those of us with children who are not close to being on the growth chart.

Things to consider:

These shots are very expensive. Insurance will often not pay for them.

There are health risks associated with these shots too.

However, I also know some really wonderful parents who believe these shots were a heavenly gift. I trust their opinions.

We likely would have done the shots had it not been for cost. Insurance would not pay for them. They are incredibly expensive.

Anyway, now I am not 100% I would do them.

My children are 5 years old. (Just turned 5)

Benjamin weighs 29 pounds.

Callie weighs 28 pounds.

Donovan weighs 33 pounds.

They are active and happy kids. Sure, I would love for them to be the size they likely would have been had prematurity not happened to them. Even so .... I am at the point of accepting they are small ... So am I ... So is my husband.

Take Care. Whatever decision you make ... I firmly believe that made with love and thought .... it is the best decision you can make at the time for your child.

Good Luck!

Melissa

Hello! My son, Isaac, is taking growth hormone injections. However - he DOES have a significant growth hormone deficiency. My understanding is that unless a child has a growth hormone deficiency - supplementing it isn't going to help. Please ask your doctor - they would know best. I just know in OUR case - we had to test the GH level before we could be considered for supplements.

Hang in there. Sorry I don't have better advice! I only know our situation which was, "luckily", pretty cut and dry... Isaac had a severe deficiency so we needed to "fix" it.

Take care,
Kara

that is a very tough call.
Can you see another doctor for his opinion? Also how many patients of this doctor were preemies with that same growth issue? I would deffinatly get a second opinon first. I wouldnt rule it out. It might be the best option, but ask around call other doctors, and even see if there is a specialist in your area.
If she doesnt have any other concerns, I might wait it out a little longer? Does it have to be done now? She might hit a growth spurt. Unless it has to be done now I would do some more research and give her little body a chance to hit a good growth spurt... Before my son hit the growth charts our doc said as long as he follows a curve he is doing what he is supposed to.

My son just turned 2 yrs old (27 weeker, 1 lb 14 oz) and we were given the opportunity to give him the growth hormone treatments. His pedi informed us that insurance would pay, but it is definately costly. My son weighs 20 pounds and his height is below his peers, not by a huge amount, just not on the chart. My husband and I were informed of the growth hormone at our son's 12 month well child check, to prepare and investigate. When he turned 2 and we were asked about concerns, we had already opted not to do the growth hormone. Our son's pedi agreed with our decision. His pedi even informed us before we told him no to the injections that there is a slight chance that tumors could develop when treatment was started. His pedi then went on to tell us, that if we decided to opt against, that our son would catch up to his peers nearing his 12th to 13th birthday. We feel we made the best decision by not giving the growth hormone treatments to our son.

Best of luck in your decision.

My daughter, Lily, was a 27 weeker weighing in at 1 lb 15.9 oz. Today, she is 3 years, 1 month and just hit 22 lbs. She is about 34 inches tall.

We had Lily checked a year ago to see if there was any medical reason she wasn't gaining weight and/or height faster. Every test came back normal. A few months later, I asked her high-risk ped at what point growth hormones might be an option. I was told that since our daughter tested normally, the shots would only be an option if she stopped gaining height. Though Lily is below the curve in both height and weight, she has kept her own steady curve.

This is, obviously, your decision to make. For us, we decided against the shots. Our daughter is healthy, she tested normally, and she comes from a long line of small, skinny people.

My son will be 4 this dec, last time he was weighed he was at 22 pounds, and stands at 2 foot 8, but hasnt been measured since April.. i know he is a little taller, his pants are too short from last winter, he was born at 25 weeks, 1 pound 12.3 ounces and length was 13 inches.. I am glad that i am not the only one out there that has this concern as well.. he too was tested for growth hormones and everything came back normal... I guess he will grow at God's speed and only he will know how tall and big he will be.. Thanks for sharing your stories!

hi, my youngest son jake is very small for his age 75cm and weighs just 19.5 lb he is 22months and is now being refered to a specialist, i am very worried could he have growth hormone deficiency? he has not grown since last year and is still in 9-12 month clothes and his shoe size is 2 and a half, he can walk and talk normally but is tiny what kind of tests will my son have? and what treatment will be given if it is g h d?

Welcome to Share! Thank you for sharing your son with us. Hopefully he will grow soon - he may be "just" a late bloomer.

hang in there,
Kara

Hell, welcome to Share. I am sorry Jake is struggling with growth, I hope the specialist will give you some answers.

When we went to endocrinology they talked to us and measured him and decided we needed to do testing to see if he had a GH deficiency. First he had to have an X-ray on his hand to make sure he had enough room between his bones to grow. Then we had to come for a three-hour blood test which was really not that big of a deal (Isaac slept through most of it - you can read my blog post about it).

Isaac's growth hormone level came back very, very low so we started daily growth hormone injections to boost his level. The first few days were very hard as he got used to Mommy giving him shots - but has been really very easy since then. He even reminds us if we forget his shot!

Hang in there, hopefully you'll get some answers soon.

take care,
Kara

I am a big advocate of 2nd opinions. If you don't feel comfortable with one specialist see another of the same time for a 2nd opinion.

I am also a big advocate of running everything by your pediatrician. My son's Endocrinologist just about had a heart attack when another specialist gave him a hormone injection to prepare him for surgery. It was then a juggle between what different specialists wanted. After talking to all three doctors (including the pediatrician), and researching online, I decided to refuse the 2 follow up injections because I felt the risks out weighed the benefits of doing the surgery sooner.

Granted its not the exact same situation as yours but what I would like to impart to you is that its ultimately your decision so ask for advice from doctors and search online.

Another thing to consider, from your post you say that your daughter is following the growth chart slowly. If by that you mean she is paralleling it but never touches it then according to my son's pediatrician she is growing well. My son's pediatrician was much less concerned about how big he was as she was about how he was growing.

My son is 12 and has been on Humatrope injections nightly since he was 5. Althought he wasn't a preemie he came into this world at 21 inches and 6 pounds 8 ounces. But fell off the growth chart by 4 months. At 10 months our doctor suggested that at a year we start testing. He had a fairly active appetite.

Due to my husband's job and an overseas move we had to wait for preauthorization to start testing and despite his new doctor's concern over his growth it took us two years before we had answers.

First he had a bone age done at close to 5 years he had a bone age of a 2 1/2 yo and was actually wearing a 3T. So we did a 3 hour blood test of GH to see his levels. The first hour he had slight traces of it in his blood at the 3rd hour he had no noticeable levels. His pituatary gland does not produce normal levels of HGH. I forgot off hand the medical term of his condition and even if I could recall I'm sure I wouldn't even come close to spelling it correctly.

I also would suggest getting a second opinion done. And not to worry you but I also wouldn't just put your child on GH without researching it. Not that I'm saying you will. The list of cons and side effects are large. But we still chose therapy over letting nature take it's course. For us it has been a God send. I have several friends that also have kids on hormone injections and know another who chose not to do it. I guess I'm saying in a not so direct way is that it's a long term solution and just be aware of what it all entails. We got 4 times a year for blood work, Xrays and growth studies. We also fight our insurance company once a year to pay for his meds that run over 1000 a month.

Good luck and remember as parents we do what we feel is best for our kids. Don't let anyone tell you what your doing is wrong. Cause NOONE loves your child the way you do.