Pituitary growth hormone from human cadavers: neurologic disease in ten recipients

Neurology. 1987 Jul;37(7):1211-3. doi: 10.1212/wnl.37.7.1211.

Abstract

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) has been reported in three US patients previously treated with human growth hormone derived from large pools of human cadaver pituitary glands (pit-hGH). Neurologic disorders other than CJD occurred in 10 growth hormone-deficient patients treated with pit-hGH. These 10 cases could have been chance events or true syndromes; some cases may have been caused by transmissible agents contained in the pooled growth hormone product.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Cadaver
  • Female
  • Growth Hormone / adverse effects*
  • Growth Hormone / deficiency
  • Growth Hormone / therapeutic use
  • Humans
  • Hypopituitarism / drug therapy
  • Male
  • Nervous System Diseases / etiology*
  • Polyradiculoneuropathy / etiology
  • Spinocerebellar Degenerations / etiology

Substances

  • Growth Hormone