Growth Hormone Test:
Why Growth Hormone Test?
CLINICAL INFORMATION
Pituitary Gland is otherwise called the master gland since these hormones help to regulate other metabolisms and govern all other hormonal secretions. Growth hormone (otherwise known as somatotropin) is a peptide hormone and is one of the several hormones secreted by the pituitary gland. GH is released in pulses, and hence the size and duration of the pulse vary with time of the day, age and sex. Growth Hormone (GH) stimulates growth, enhances cell division, cell regeneration, regulates cellular metabolism, increases muscle mass, bone growth (especially in children), decreases body fat and thus controls the growth of our body. GH is synthesized, stored and secreted by somatotropic cells of the pituitary gland. GH also serves as a stress hormone (it increases the volume of glucose and free fatty acids). The levels of Growth Hormone in the blood fluctuate throughout the day depending on the type of diet and the routine levels of activities. Sometimes in certain cases, this GH secretion may be varied, thus resulting in GH deficiency (due to hypopituitarism) or excessive secretion of GH. Growth hormone levels are elevated by puberty, sleep, stress, exercise, low glucose levels in the blood etc. The significance of the GH Serum Test is that it helps to diagnose GH disorders such as Growth hormone deficiency (hypopituitarism), gigantism (unusually grown tall children), acromegaly (seen in some adults) and tumour in the brain (triggering the pituitary gland hence resulting in a proportional elevation in Growth hormone secretion), GH Resistance etc. Factors that may affect the GH levels include GH measurement during and after the pulse. As clinically established and it is anticipated that a higher level of GH may be projected as normal during a pulse and likewise, a lower level of GH may reflect around the end of the pulse, therefore a random measurement of GH is important. GH test also helps to determine the cause of decreased bone density, reduced muscle strength, increased lipid levels or fats in the body, insulin tolerance etc. Clinical manifestations of GH in children are slow growth rate (when compared with children of the same age), stunt growth or dwarfism, delayed puberty, impaired vision etc, and while in adults it may manifest in signs and symptoms of fatigue, decreased bone density, reduced muscle mass. Symptoms and symptoms (clinical manifestations) of GH excess (gigantism) in children include excessive growth compared with children of the same age, large head (comparatively), mild to moderately obese. Symptoms and symptoms (clinical manifestations) of GH excess (Acromegaly) in adults include deep voice, larger than normal facial features (such as lips, nose, tongue etc), excessive sweating and body odour, thickening of bones, rough and oily skin, erectile dysfunction (in men) and irregular menstrual cycle (in females). Additional tests include GH suppression test, GH Stimulation Test, IGF-1 Test (Since GH levels proportionally increase the levels of IGF-1), IGBP-3 Test, cortisol, glucagon, prolactin, testosterone, thyroid, imaging studies such as X-Rays, CT Scan, MRI etc (to detect a suspected tumour in the brain).
General Instructions:
Sample Requirement: Specimen - Blood sample collected from the vein. Test Preparation: Fasting Required (10 – 12 hours).
NOTE - Sample for specimen collections may vary based on the patient’s condition/cases according to the patient’s presenting complaints/signs or symptoms:
SPECIMEN REQUIREMENT (Special or Rare Cases) - As instructed and guided by Physician / Clinician / Pathologist / as per Laboratory’s requirements, according to procedures and protocols.
This Multi-Specialty Clinical Referral Laboratory RT DIAGNOSTICS provides precise and accurate tests with an extensive range of testing services to the medical centres to help in the diagnosis and identification of pathology in the test specimens for infectious diseases and also to evaluate the function of organ systems of the patient. It prevents further complications and helps to stabilize and restore health to near normalcy at the earliest without delay.
