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Diagnosis and therapy with GENOTROPIN should be initiated and monitored by physicians who are appropriately qualified and experienced in the diagnosis and management of patients with the therapeutic indication of use.
Myositis is a very rare adverse event that may be related to the preservative metacresol. In the case of myalgia or disproportionate pain at injection site, myositis should be considered and if confirmed, a GENOTROPIN presentation without metacresol should be used.
The maximum recommended daily dose should not be exceeded (see Dosage & Administration).
Insulin sensitivity: Somatropin may reduce insulin sensitivity. For patients with diabetes mellitus, the insulin dose may require adjustment after somatropin therapy is instituted. Patients with diabetes, glucose intolerance, or additional risk factors for diabetes should be monitored closely during somatropin therapy.
Thyroid function: Growth hormone increases the extrathyroidal conversion of T4 to T3 which may result in a reduction in serum T4 and an increase in serum T3 concentrations. Whereas the peripheral thyroid hormone levels have remained within the reference ranges in the majority of healthy subjects, hypothyroidism theoretically may develop in subjects with subclinical hypothyroidism. Consequently, monitoring of thyroid function should therefore be conducted in all patients. In patients with hypopituitarism on standard replacement therapy, the potential effect of growth hormone treatment on thyroid function must be closely monitored.
Hypoadrenalism: Introduction of somatropin treatment may result in inhibition of 11βHSD-1 and reduced serum cortisol concentrations. In patients treated with somatropin, previously undiagnosed central (secondary) hypoadrenalism may be unmasked and glucocorticoid replacement may be required. In addition, patients treated with glucocorticoid replacement therapy for previously diagnosed hypoadrenalism may require an increase in their maintenance or stress doses, following initiation of somatropin treatment (see Interactions).
Use with oral oestrogen therapy: If a woman taking somatropin begins oral oestrogen therapy, the dose of somatropin may need to be increased to maintain the serum IGF-1 levels within the normal age-appropriate range. Conversely, if a woman on somatropin discontinues oral oestrogen therapy, the dose of somatropin may need to be reduced to avoid excess of growth hormone and/or side effects (see Interactions).
In growth hormone deficiency secondary to treatment of malignant disease, it is recommended to pay attention to signs of relapse of the malignancy. In childhood cancer survivors, an increased risk of a second neoplasm has been reported in patients treated with somatropin after their first neoplasm. Intracranial tumours, in particular meningiomas, in patients treated with radiation to the head for their first neoplasm, were the most common of these second neoplasms.
In patients with endocrine disorders, including growth hormone deficiency, slipped epiphyses of the hip may occur more frequently than in the general population. Children limping during treatment with somatropin, should be examined clinically.
Benign intracranial hypertension: In case of severe or recurrent headache, visual problems, nausea and/or vomiting, a funduscopy for papilloedema is recommended. If papilloedema is confirmed, a diagnosis of benign intracranial hypertension should be considered and, if appropriate, the growth hormone treatment should be discontinued. At present there is insufficient evidence to give specific advice on the continuation of growth hormone treatment in patients with resolved intracranial hypertension. If growth hormone treatment is restarted, careful monitoring for symptoms of intracranial hypertension is necessary.
Leukaemia: Leukaemia has been reported in a small number of growth hormone deficiency patients, some of whom have been treated with somatropin. However, there is no evidence that leukaemia incidence is increased in growth hormone recipients without predisposition factors.
Antibodies: As with all somatropin containing products, a small percentage of patients may develop antibodies to GENOTROPIN. GENOTROPIN has given rise to the formation of antibodies in approximately 1% of patients. The binding capacity of these antibodies is low and there is no effect on growth rate. Testing for antibodies to somatropin should be carried out in any patient with otherwise unexplained lack of response.
Acute critical illness: The effects of GENOTROPIN on recovery were studied in two placebo controlled trials involving 522 critically ill adult patients suffering complications following open heart surgery, abdominal surgery, multiple accidental trauma or acute respiratory failure. Mortality was higher in patients treated with 5.3 or 8 mg GENOTROPIN daily compared to patients receiving placebo, 42% vs. 19%. Based on this information, these types of patients should not be treated with GENOTROPIN. As there is no information available on the safety of growth hormone substitution therapy in acutely critically ill patients, the benefits of continued treatment in this situation should be weighed against the potential risks involved.
In all patients developing other or similar acute critical illness, the possible benefit of treatment with GENOTROPIN must be weighed against the potential risk involved.
Pancreatitis: Although rare, pancreatitis should be considered in somatropin-treated patients, especially children who develop abdominal pain.
Prader-Willi syndrome: In patients with Prader-Willi syndrome, treatment should always be in combination with a calorie-restricted diet.
There have been reports of fatalities associated with the use of growth hormone in pediatric patients with Prader-Willi syndrome who had one or more of the following risk factors: severe obesity (those patients exceeding a weight/height of 200%), history of respiratory impairment or sleep apnoea, or unidentified respiratory infection. Patients with one or more of these factors may be at increased risk.
Before initiation of treatment with somatropin in patients with Prader-Willi syndrome, signs for upper airway obstruction, sleep apnoea, or respiratory infections should be assessed.
If during the evaluation of upper airway obstruction, pathological findings are observed, the child should be referred to an Ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist for treatment and resolution of the respiratory disorder prior to initiating growth hormone treatment.
Sleep apnoea should be assessed before onset of growth hormone treatment by recognised methods such as polysomnography or overnight oxymetry, and monitored if sleep apnoea is suspected.
If during treatment with somatropin patients show signs of upper airway obstruction (including onset of or increased snoring), treatment should be interrupted, and a new ENT assessment performed.
All patients with Prader-Willi syndrome should be monitored if sleep apnoea is suspected.
Patients should be monitored for signs of respiratory infections, which should be diagnosed as early as possible and treated aggressively.
All patients with Prader-Willi syndrome should also have effective weight control before and during growth hormone treatment.
Scoliosis is common in patients with Prader-Willi syndrome. Scoliosis may progress in any child during rapid growth. Signs of scoliosis should be monitored during treatment.
Experience with prolonged treatment in adults and in patients with Prader-Willi syndrome is limited.
Small for gestational age: In short children born SGA other medical reasons or treatments that could explain growth disturbance should be ruled out before starting treatment.
In SGA children it is recommended to measure fasting insulin and blood glucose before start of treatment and annually thereafter. In patients with increased risk for diabetes mellitus (e.g. familial history of diabetes, obesity, severe insulin resistance, acanthosis nigricans) oral glucose tolerance testing (OGTT) should be performed. If overt diabetes occurs, growth hormone should not be administered.
In SGA children it is recommended to measure the IGF-I level before start of treatment and twice a year thereafter. If on repeated measurements IGF-I levels exceed +2 SD compared to references for age and pubertal status, the IGF-I / IGFBP-3 ratio could be taken into account to consider dose adjustment.
Experience in initiating treatment in SGA patients near onset of puberty is limited. It is therefore not recommended to initiate treatment near onset of puberty. Experience in patients with Silver-Russell syndrome is limited.
Some of the height gain obtained with treating short children born SGA with growth hormone may be lost if treatment is stopped before final height is reached.
Chronic renal insufficiency: In chronic renal insufficiency, renal function should be below 50 percent of normal before institution of therapy. To verify growth disturbance, growth should be followed for a year preceding institution of therapy. During this period, conservative treatment for renal insufficiency (which includes control of acidosis, hyperparathyroidism and nutritional status) should have been established and should be maintained during treatment. The treatment should be discontinued at renal transplantation.
To date, no data on final height in patients with chronic renal insufficiency treated with GENOTROPIN are available.
Sodium content: This medicinal product contains less than 1 mmol sodium (23 mg) per dose. Patients on low sodium diets can be informed that this medicinal product is essentially 'sodium-free'.
Effects on Ability to Drive and Use Machines: No effects on the ability to drive and use machines have been observed.
Use in the Elderly: Experience in patients above 80 years is limited. Elderly patients may be more sensitive to the action of GENOTROPIN, and therefore may be more prone to develop adverse reactions.
