Indian Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism · Published 2025-09-01 · DOI 10.4103/ijem.ijem_183_25
Introduction: Patients with Sheehan’s syndrome (SS) commonly exhibit cardiovascular risk factors, including abdominal obesity, dyslipidaemia, hepatic steatosis and chronic inflammation. In addition, quality of life (QOL) is poor despite adequate replacement with glucocorticoids and thyroxine. This study evaluated the effects of growth hormone (GH) replacement on body mass index (BMI), lipid profile, body/hepatic fat and QOL in SS patients. Methods: This prospective study enrolled 14 SS patients with GH deficiency on stable hormonal therapy (excluding GH). Waist-hip ratio (WHR), BMI, lipids, liver steatosis and fibrosis, body fat (by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry) and QoL (using QOL in Adult GH Deficiency Assessment (QoL-AGHDA)) were assessed at baseline and after 24 weeks of GH replacement. Results: The mean age of the patients was 55.7 ± 6.9 years, with a mean disease duration of 19.4 ± 1.6 years (range, 8–27 years). After GH replacement, total cholesterol decreased from 213.35 ± 43.66 to 189.29 ± 23.49 mg/dl, LDL-cholesterol from 120.79 ± 38.73 to 89.36 ± 20.47 mg/dl and triglycerides from 288.79 ± 91 to 231.50 ± 47.15 mg/dl, while HDL-cholesterol increased from 41.29 ± 11.44 to 45.64 ± 4.39 mg/dl. Total body fat reduced from 39.97 ± 5.0% to 37.99 ± 4.5% (P = 0.015); WHR and BMI remained unchanged. Liver fat (controlled attenuation parameter) decreased from 248.64 ± 42.14 to 230.29 ± 36.86 dB/m (P = 0.025) and liver stiffness from 5.13 ± 0.90 to 4.53 ± 1.25 kPa (P = 0.025). QoL-AGHDA scores improved from 11.79 ± 3.14 to 4 ± 3.06. Conclusion: GH replacement in SS patients improves lipid parameters, reduces body and hepatic fat and enhances QOL.
Abstract from DOAJ. Public domain (CC0 1.0).
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