Growth Hormone
Sample: Serum (refrigerate)
Schedule: Daily
Units: ng/mL
Range: Less than 5,0 ng/mL
Remarks: Growth Hormone (Somatropin) is used in the diagnosis of hypothalamic disorder, hypopituitarism, acromegaly, and ectopic production by neoplasms. Growth hormone is secreted in a pulsatile manner and is destroyed rapidly, resulting in dramatic fluctuations in serum levels. For this reason, random GH serum level is not useful in establishing its deficiency, but it is necessary to perform GH stimulation and/or suppression tests.
