09 0.0806 Change in cortical thickness vs. change in BMD total hip GH-treated 0.13 0.0005 Change in cortical thickness vs. change in BMD total hip Untreated 0.02 0.3824 Discussion The main finding of the present study was that GH substitution, after achievement of final height in young adults with CO

GHD, is associated with a significant increase in cortical bone thickness. The observed reduction in endosteal diameter in GH-treated patients in this study suggests that the increase results from endosteal bone growth rather from periosteal apposition. While there is no one single cause of bone fragility, fewer or thinner trabeculae and thin cortices, all play their part in low peak bone density [18]. In early click here adulthood, material and structural strength is maintained by remodelling, the focal replacement of old with new bone. During ageing, concurrent bone formation on the outer (periosteal) cortical bone surface partly compensates for bone loss. Although the GS-1101 in vitro structural basis of bone fragility is determined partly by genetic and environmental factors, growth during the pubertal and early adult years has a significant influence on bone strength in later years. Hence, a GH-induced reduction in endosteal diameter may, potentially, have beneficial effects on cortical bone strength [19, 20], thereby reducing the risk of bone fragility later in life [21]. Limited data are currently available on the growth

patterns of cortical bone during normal adolescence and in patients with CO GHD, and our findings therefore also contribute to the understanding of cortical bone development during growth. There are few data on changes in cortical bone density with GH therapy in patients with CO GHD. Using peripheral quantitative computed tomography, Schweizer et al. [22] reported that 12 months of GH therapy was associated with an increase in both outer and inner diameters of the radius, as well as decreased cortical thickness. The impact of GH on cortical bone might be different after epiphyseal closure and cessation of longitudinal bone growth. The findings of

this study are in agreement with the earlier reported densitometry findings of the same population [13], showing an increase in lumbar spine BMD of 3.5% and total hip BMD of 2.4% during GH therapy. Interestingly, some Benzatropine studies report a reduction in bone density during the first year of GH therapy, which is likely caused by an increase in remodelling space and a temporary reduction in bone mass and size [3, 23, 24]. Longer treatment periods show increased bone formation as the areal bone density tends to fall during the first 6 months of treatment and reaches baseline levels again between 6 and 12 months [13]. In the present study, in which only cortical bone is encountered, a linear increase in cortical area was observed from the very start of treatment. Despite only a marginal increase in bone width being observed in our study, there was a pronounced reduction in the inner bone diameter.