GROWTH-FACTORS - FUTURE-PROSPECTS IN RENAL-FAILURE

Chronic renal failure is associated with an abnormal growth hormone/in sulin-like growth factor-1 axis. In addition, nutritional status stron gly regulates this axis. Because these hormones are involved in growth in children and maintenance of a normal body composition in adults, e xperimental and clinical studies have tested the metabolic effects of these recombinant growth factors. Various conditions in which these gr owth factors have been administered have been reported, such as the re covery of acute renal failure, protein metabolism in chronic renal fai lure, growth improvement in uremic children, the increase in renal fun ction in nondialyzed uremic patients, and the potential treatment of m alnutrition in adult maintenance dialysis patients.