Effects of Growth Hormone Treatment on Height, Weight, and Obesity in Taiwanese Patients with Prader-Willi Syndrome

Background Information regarding the efficacy of growth hormone (GH) therapy in Asian Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) patients is lacking. We report our experience with GH treatment in children with PWS in Taiwan. Methods Forty-six PWS patients (27 males, 19 females; age range, 1 year 4 months to 13 years 7 months) who received and/or who are currently receiving GH treatment (0.1 IU/kg/day subcutaneously) for a period from 1 year to 3 years were retro-spectively analyzed. We evaluated height, weight, body mass index (BMI) and Rohrer index, before and after GH treatment. Results After patients had received GH for 1, 2 and 3 years, a significant improvement in mean height standard deviation score (SDS) was noted from −1.24 to −0.31 ( p p p p p p p Conclusion This 3-year, retrospective study indicates that PWS patients benefit from GH therapy in height increase and improved body composition.