Plasma Concentration of Ghreline in dirls with true precocious puberty before and during treatment with GnRH agonists and its correlation with obesity

Background and The precocious puberty in girls can have some adverse effects such as growth stoppage and subsequent short stature in comparison with predicted final adult height. GnRH agonists are now considered the treatment of choice for CPP. One of the side effects of these drugs is increased appetite and consequent obesity. During puberty a progressive reduction in the level of ghrelin has been reported. This study was aimed to assess the obesity and its relationship with ghrelin in girls with true precocious puberty treated with GnRH agonists. A sample of 20 consecutive girls with true precocious puberty was selected for this prospective observational study. They received 3.75 mg intramuscular GnRH every four weeks. Height, weight, body mass index, waist circumference, Tanner stage, body fat and serum ghrelin, were measured in the time of enterance to study and during follow up visits. The follow-up visits were carried out after 6 and 12 months. Mean age of the studied 19 child was 87.5 ± 10.1. Height and weight increased significantly after 6 and 12 months, P-value<0.01. The ghrelin level and body fat percentage demonstrated no significant change during the 12 months follow-up, P-value>0.05. There were not any significant relationships between neither ghrelin and BMI nor ghrelin and body fat percentage, P-value>0.1. It seems that treatment with GnRHa is effective. More importantly patients with increased BMI may need appropriate dietary consultation to accomplish their weight control during the course of the treatment.