Grunfeld C, Mulligan K, Hellerstein M, Schambelan M; International Conference on AIDS.
Int Conf AIDS. 1992 Jul 19-24; 8: B230 (abstract no. PoB 3835).
Univ. of California, San Francisco.
OBJECTIVES: Body wasting, especially loss of body cell mass, is a serious complication of AIDS that is often the direct cause of death. Therapies that increase caloric intake may increase body weight, especially body fat, but do not always increase body cell mass. Because growth hormone (GH) induces positive nitrogen balance and increases lean body mass while increasing lipolysis and fatty acid oxidation, metabolic changes that could spare glucose and protein, we evaluated the response to GH in AIDS. METHODS: Six HIV positive subjects with an average weight loss of 19.3 +/- 1.4% of previously documented weight were hospitalized for successive periods of 5d precontrol, 7d baseline and 7d treatment (Saizen recombinant human GH, Serono Laboratories, Norwell, MA; 0.1 mg/kg/d). Subjects consumed a constant metabolic diet and had nitrogen and electrolyte balances performed as well as measurement of substrate oxidation. RESULTS: Subjects maintained weight during the baseline period and averaged 2.0 +/- 0.3 kg gain during GH. Nitrogen balance became positive during GH with urine urea nitrogen excretion decreasing by 5.9 +/- 0.8 gm/day. Potassium excretion decreased by 20 +/- 2 meq per day consistent with repletion of body cell mass. Protein oxidation decreased from 0.90 +/- .05 to 0.45 +/- 0.08 mg/kg/min while fatty acid oxidation increased by 28%. Minimal changes occurred in glucose and fat tolerance. CONCLUSION: Despite the metabolic disturbances that occur in AIDS subjects with prior weight loss, GH treatment promoted protein sparing, positive nitrogen balance and weight gain consistent with increased body cell mass. If these changes can be sustained during chronic GH therapy, then it may be possible to reverse or ameliorate the wasting syndrome in AIDS.
Publication Types:
Keywords:
- Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
- Body Composition
- Body Weight
- Diet, Reducing
- Energy Intake
- Growth Hormone
- Human Growth Hormone
- Humans
- Lipolysis
- Nitrogen
- Nutritional Status
- Obesity
- Protein Binding
- Proteins
- Weight Gain
- therapy
Other ID:
UI: 102199278
From Meeting Abstracts