Rapid cardiovascular effects of growth hormone treatment in short prepubertal children: impact of treatment duration.

Objective: Previous studies show that growth hormone (GH) treatment increases cardiac dimensions in short children with GH deficiency (GHD) and has diverse cardiac effects in children with idiopathic short stature (ISS). This study was performed to assess the effect of GH on the cardiovascular system in short children with a broad range of GH secretion and GH sensitivity/responsiveness.

Design And Patients: In this prospective, multicentre study, short prepubertal children diagnosed with isolated GHD (89) or ISS (38) were followed during 2 years of GH treatment.

Long-term follow-up of mitral valve regurgitation--importance of mitral valve pathology and left ventricular function on survival.

Background: Timing of surgery for mitral regurgitation (MR) is one of the more difficult decisions for the practicing cardiologist.

Methods And Results: In order to determine useful clinical cut-offs, we investigated the influence of baseline echocardiographic predictors for survival in a long-time follow-up cohort. Data from 144 patients with MR were collected between 1989 and 1993.