Paradoxical GH response to TRH during status epilepticus in man

Information on GH in relation to epilepsy is sparse, and to our knowledge t here is no information on GH levels during status epilepticus in man. We st udied GH in serum in six patients during status epilepticus, and in a contr ol group of six seizure-free patients with epilepsy, before and after injec tion of TRH. The baseline GH values before TRH administration were within t he normal range in all patients. After injection of TRH all patients with s tatus epilepticus showed a paradoxical peak-shaped increase of GH to at lea st twice their baseline levels within 45 min after the injection (median ba sal GH value 1.5 mU/l and median peak GH value 6.5 mU/l. mean increase 330% ). No uniform reaction to TRH was observed in the control group (median bas al GH value 2.7 mU/l and median of the highest value within 45 min 5.2 mU/l ). A paradoxical peak reaction of GH to TRH was significantly more frequent in the status epilepticus group compared with the control group (P = 0.008 , Fisher exact probability test). TRH is not considered a GH-releasing horm one in humans during normal conditions, but a paradoxical response of GH to TRH, similar to that observed during status epilepticus, has been reported in various other pathological conditions, such as acromegaly, liver cirrho sis, mental depression and hypothyroidism Our results of GH release after T RH administration in patients with status epilepticus suggest an altered re gulation of GH as a result of the long-standing epileptic activity.