Clinical evidence for growth-hormone secretagogues supplied for research
What clinical evidence supports the uses under which growth-hormone secretagogues are supplied for research?
§1Abstract
§1.1Review question
What clinical evidence supports the uses under which growth-hormone secretagogues are supplied for research?
§1.2PICO frame
Table 1. The registered PICO frame. Any change made after protocol registration is recorded in the amendment log at §5 and is identified there as post hoc.
| Element | As registered |
|---|---|
| Population | Adults without a diagnosed growth-hormone deficiency. |
| Intervention | A growth-hormone-releasing hormone analogue or ghrelin receptor agonist. |
| Comparator | Placebo or no treatment. |
| Outcomes | Body composition; functional capacity; any clinical outcome. |
§1.3Method in brief
A structured map of the available evidence for a question where the Institute judges that a quantitative synthesis is not yet supportable. A scoping review states what would have to exist before an intervention review could be attempted. The protocol was registered with the Institute's secretariat before the search was executed. The search was run on 29 October 2024 across 8 sources and is reproduced in full at §2. Screening, extraction and certainty assessment were performed independently by two members of the secretariat with disagreement resolved by a third.
§1.4Conclusion
The clinical development of every compound in this group was directed at diagnosis of growth-hormone deficiency, at a specific disease indication, or at nothing beyond phase 1. The Institute identified no randomised trial in adults without growth-hormone deficiency reporting a functional or body-composition outcome for any of these compounds at the doses and schedules under which they are supplied. Claims in this group are graded very low certainty throughout, and the pharmacological observation that a compound raises growth hormone is recorded as a pharmacodynamic fact and not as a clinical outcome.
The conclusion rests on 8 contributing studies, listed with their extracted data at §3 and summarised outcome by outcome at §4.
§1.5Limitations
§1.6Consultation
This review was released for public comment before ratification. Draft synthesis: Clinical evidence for growth-hormone secretagogues supplied for research received 9 submissions. Amendments arising are recorded in the amendment log and are traceable to a numbered submission.