Hyposomatomedinemia in the Nursing Home Patient

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Abstract
Plasma somatomedin C (SmC) concentration was compared in three groups of men: 58 healthy independent men aged 26 to 45 years; 28 independent men aged 52 to 87 years; and 50 male nursing home residents aged 51 to 95 years. Somatomedin C (mean .+-. SE) was 0.73 .+-. .04 U/mL, 0.41 .+-. .03 U/mL, and 0.33 .+-. .03 U/mL in these three groups, respectively (P < .05 for the differences between all three groups). Somatomedin C less than 0.25 U/mL, a range consistent with severe growth hormone deficiency in children, occurred in 0% of the independent younger men, in 15% of the independent elderly, and in 37% of the nursing home men. Somatomedin C was inversely correlated with age in the independent elderly, but the excess of hyposomatomedinemia in the nursing home men was not explained by age.