Impairment of GH secretion in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is not affected by riluzole treatment. J Endocrinol Invest 2007 Oct;30(9):767-70
Date
11/13/2007Pubmed ID
17993769DOI
10.1007/BF03350815Scopus ID
2-s2.0-36949017756 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 5 CitationsAbstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), the most common motor neurone disorder in human adults, is characterized by selective and progressive degeneration of upper and lower motor neurones in the central nervous system. The main currently available drug for ALS treatment is riluzole, a compound that acts through inhibition of glutamate release, postsynaptic receptor activation, and voltage-sensitive channel inhibition. GH secretion, evaluated by GHRH+arginine (ARG) test, has recently been reported to be impaired in most untreated ALS patients. The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether riluzole administration could interfere with GH secretion and therefore with the diagnosis of adult GH deficiency. Ten patients (6 males, 4 females, mean age 59+/-11 yr) were studied performing GHRH+ARG test before and 3 months after starting riluzole treatment (100 mg/day). Blood samples for GH were collected at baseline, at 30 and 60 min. Both before and during riluzole treatment, 5 patients showed GH deficiency and 5 patients had a normal GH response according to body mass index (BMI). Mean peak GH levels were similar before and during riluzole treatment (13.4+/-10 vs 14.2+/-10.1 microg/l, p=ns). No significant correlation was observed between GH concentrations and age, BMI, disease duration, severity or clinical (bulbar/spinal) form. In conclusion, the present data confirm that GH secretion is impaired in a new series of ALS patients and indicate that riluzole treatment does not interfere with GH secretion. Thus, evaluation of GH secretion in ALS patients can also be performed without withdrawing riluzole treatment.
Author List
Morselli LL, Bongioanni P, Genovesi M, Licitra R, Rossi B, Murri L, Bogazzi F, Cecconi E, Martino E, Gasperi MAuthor
Lisa Morselli MD, PhD Assistant Professor in the Medicine department at Medical College of WisconsinMESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
AgedAmyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
Body Mass Index
Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists
Female
Growth Hormone
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Riluzole
Severity of Illness Index
Time Factors