1990 Dr. Daniel Rudman Study
New England Journal of Medicine, Volume 323 July 5, 1990 Number 1
EFFECTS OF HUMAN GROWTH HORMONE IN MEN OVER 60 YEARS OLD Daniel Rudman, M.D., Axel G. Feller, M.D., Hoskote S. Nagraj, M.D., Gregory A. Gergans, M.D., Pardee Y. Lalitha, M.D., Allen F. Goldberg, D.D.S., Robert A. Schlenker, Ph.D., Lester Cohn, M.D., Inge W. Rudman, B.S., and Dale E. Mattson, Ph.D.
Abstract Background. The decliningactivity of the growth hormone-insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) axis with advancing age may contribute to the decrease in lean body mass and the increase in mass of adipose tissue that occur with aging.
Methods. To test this hypothesis, we studied IGF-1 plasma with 21 healthy men from 61 to 81 years old who had plasma IGF-1 concentrations of less than 350 U per liter during a six-month base-line period and a six-month treatment period that followed. During the treatment period, 12 men (group 1) received approximately 0.03 mg of biosynthetic human growth hormone per kilogram of body weight subcutaneously three times a week, and 9 men (group 2) received no treatment. Plasma IGF-1 levels were measured monthly. At the end of each period, we measured lean body mass, the mass of adipose tissue, skin thickness (epidermis plus dermis), and bone density at nine skeletal sites.
