HUMATROPE

Humatrope Description

Humatrope is a medicine approved by the Food and Drug Administration for children and adults with growth hormone deficiency (GHD). Children can be treated with Humatrope as a hormone replacement therapy. The need for such treatment arises from growth failure due to conditions such as idiopathic short stature. The FDA also approves this treatment for adults with adult-onset of childhood-onset GHD.

The active ingredient of Humatrope is a protein that is a recombinant growth hormone. It belongs to a drug classification of growth stimulants. Somatropin mimics the amino acid sequence of the human growth hormone. HGH is naturally made by our bodies and stimulates and maintains growth at all ages. Children’s bodies are most in need of growth hormone. For those with growth failure, finding a reliable and effective medication to reverse the process of growth inhibition is top priority.

Who Can Use Humatrope? (Indications)

The only way to be positive of your safety before taking medical action is by consulting with a doctor. Besides, the only way to legally attain hormone treatment products is with a valid prescription. Make sure you have thoroughly discussed your situation and taken the necessary tests to avoid harm to your health.

Humatrope is used to treat the following:

Growth hormone deficiency in:

• Children born small for gestational age (SGA).
• Adults with deficiency as a result of pituitary disease, radiation therapy, surgery, trauma, or hypothalamic disease.
• Children and adults with idiopathic short stature (ISS)
• Children and adults with short stature homeobox-containing gene (SHOX) deficiency
• Children and adults with short stature due to Turner’s syndrome
• Children and adults with a low level of natural growth hormone production

Indications for treatment with Humatrope include pediatric and adult patients with growth hormone deficiency. For children specifically, other indications include short stature homeobox-containing gene (SHOX) deficiency, idiopathic short stature, Turner Syndrome, and those small for gestational age. Adult users of Humatrope are men and women with growth hormone deficiency that did not result from old age. Adults who have a preexisting GH deficiency may need to undergo treatment again.

Humatrope shouldn’t be taken be those with diabetic retinopathy, acute critical illness, an active malignancy or closed epiphyses, or anyone with an allergy to Humatrope’s ingredients. Most often an allergic reaction Is accompanied by a rash, hives, or swelling.

Avoid Adverse Reactions

Dosages for the hormone prescribed to children range from 0.02 to 0.05 mg per kilogram every day. For adults, 0.15 to 0.3 mg every day. Humatrope is distributed as a powder in either a 5mg vial and 5 mL of diluent solution or 6-24 mg cartridges and prefilled syringe of diluent.

Dosages are not to be exceeded under any circumstances. If you miss a daily dose, it is better to skip it and avoid chance of overdosage or allergic reaction.

Who Shouldn’t Use Humatrope? (Contraindications)

It is critical that your doctor knows of any past conditions or medical treatments before a treatment is initialized. Tell your doctor is you are taking any other medications such as insulin, drugs that contain steroids, drugs for seizures, cyclosporine, or other hormone replacement therapies. If you are pregnant or nursing, Humatrope should be carefully considered and only administered in dire need. Patients older than 65 may be sensitive to Humatrope. Anyone with a pre-existing tumor or abnormal tissue in the brain should also be carefully considered to avoid risk of a new malignancy. If your family medical history puts you at risk of diabetes, your doctor should monitor your blood sugar throughout use of Humatrope. Children with Prader-Willi syndrome must also have their therapy monitored is they have risk factors of severe breathing problems, sleep apnea, obesity, or a respiratory infection. This applies especially to male children with Prader-Willi syndrome. Other children whose growth plates have already closed should not be taking Humatrope.

Besides the above mentioned, Humatrope should not be taken by anyone who:

• Has an acute critical illness
• Is allergic to Somatropin or other ingredients of Humatrope
• Currently has cancer or an active brain tumor
• Has just had a serious accident
• Has respiratory failure
• Has undergone open heart, abdominal, or another serious surgery and developed complications
• Suffers from diabetic retinopathy

How Do you Administer Humatrope?

Should your doctor decide that you can benefit from the effects of Humatrope and you aren’t in a risk zone, you will be given a prescription. Treatments vary with doses and cycle periods. Humatrope must be injected and injection sites should be rotated and monitored. Humatrope comes in vials or injection devices for comfortable and painless self-use. Usually the injection must be done daily, but for some cases such as for children it is administered weekly. Dosage depends on many factors and only a doctor will be able to decide how much is right for you.

Take Humatrope exactly as instructed by the doctor and consult with him before stopping or changing treatment. The solution should be refrigerated but never frozen. It should not receive a lot of light. It should be kept out of reach of small children.