- © 2006 Marshfield Clinic
The Prevalence of Growth Hormone Deficiency and Celiac Disease in Short Children
- Diletta Giovenale, MD,
- Cristina Meazza, PhD,
- Giuliana M. Cardinale, MD,
- Maddalena Sposito, MD,
- Costanzo Mastrangelo, MD,
- Beatrice Messini, MD,
- Giuseppe Citro, MD,
- Maurizio Delvecchio, MD,
- Salvatore Di Maio, MD and
- Mauro Bozzola, MD
- Diletta Giovenale, MD, Dipartimento di Scienze Pediatriche, Università degli Studi di Pavia, IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo, Pavia, Italy
- Cristina Meazza, PhD, Dipartimento di Scienze Pediatriche, Università degli Studi di Pavia, IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo, Pavia, Italy
- Giuliana M. Cardinale, MD, Divisione di Pediatria, Ospedale “F. Ferrari”, Casatano, Lecce, Italy
- Maddalena Sposito, MD, Clinica Pediatrica Monteluce, Perugia, Italy
- Costanzo Mastrangelo, MD, U.O. Pediatria, Ospedali Riuniti, Foggia, Italy
- Beatrice Messini, MD, U.O. Pediatrica, Ospedale di Foligno, Foligno, Italy
- Giuseppe Citro, MD, U.O. Endocrinologica, Ospedale San Carlo, Potenza, Italy
- Maurizio Delvecchio, MD, Dipartimento di Biomedicina dell’età evolutiva, Università degli studi di Bari, Bari, Italy
- Salvatore Di Maio, MD, Dipartimento di Pediatria e Riabilitazione, Azienda Ospedaliera Pediatrica “Santobono-Pausilipon”, Napoli, Italy
- Mauro Bozzola, MD, Dipartimento di Scienze Pediatriche, Università degli Studi di Pavia, IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo, Pavia, Italy
- Reprint Requests:
Mauro Bozzola, MD, Dipartimento di Scienze Pediatriche, Università di Pavia, IRCCS San Matteo, Piazzale C. Golgi 2, 27100 Pavia, Italia. Tel: +39-0382-502891; Fax: +39-0382-527976; E-mail: mauro.bozzola{at}unipv.it
Abstract
Objectives: To assess the occurrence of growth hormone deficiency (GHD) in patients with celiac disease (CD) referred for short stature.
Design: A retrospective, multi-center study. A total of 7066 children with short stature were referred to a number of centers for second-line evaluation over a 5-year period. All patients were screened for CD by antiendomysial antibodies (EMA) and antitissue transglutaminase IgA.Those with positive sera underwent intestinal biopsy. The EMA-negative patients and the EMA-positive ones who did not grow after 1 year of gluten-free diet underwent endocrinological investigation.
Results: Among the 7066 short children (age 2–14 years) evaluated, 650 (9.2%) had GHD and 44 (0.63%) had CD. An association of both CD and GHD was found in 16 short children (0.23%); these children did not grow after 1 year of gluten-free diet and therefore GH treatment was started.
Conclusions: GH secretion should be evaluated in celiac patients showing no catch-up growth after an appropriate period on a gluten-free diet in spite of reversion to seronegativity for EMA.
