Six months of recombinant human GH therapy in patients with ischemic cardiac failure does not influence left ventricular function and mass

Beneficial effects of recombinant human GH on cardiac function have been re ported in hum ans with GH deficiency and in patients with idiopathic dilate d cardiomyopathy. No randomized controlled trial has been performed on the effects of recombinant human GH on cardiac function in patients with ischem ic cardiac failure. We therefore randomly assigned 22 patients with ischemi c cardiac failure (left ventricular ejection fraction, <40%; 19 men and 3 w omen; mean age, 64 yr) to receive 6 months of unblinded therapy with recomb inant human GH (2.0 IU/d) or no treatment. Primary end points were left ven tricular ejection fraction and left ventricular mass. Left ventricular end- diastolic volume, left ventricular end-systolic volume, and myocardial perf usion, both at rest and during exercise, were assessed as well. Cardiac ima ging techniques were electrocardiographically gated single photon emission computer tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. In addition, biochemica l and biometric measurements were performed. Nineteen patients completed th e study (10 controls and 9 GH-treated subjects). IGF-I and IGF-binding prot ein-3 increased significantly after recombinant human GH treatment (+24% an d +58%, respectively) compared with control values (-14% and +5%; P < 0.05) . Left ventricular ejection fraction, left ventricular end-diastolic volume , left ventricular end-systolic volume, left ventricular mass, and myocardi al perfusion were not influenced by recombinant human GH therapy. We conclu de that 6 months of recombinant human GH treatment in patients with ischemi c cardiac failure had no beneficial effect on left ventricular function and mass.