Growth Hormone and the Heart

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Abstract
ALTHOUGH GH is primarily involved in the regulation of somatic growth, it also participates in the control number of physiological processes, e.g. maintenance muscle mass and strength, body composition, and regulation of nutrient metabolism (1–3). Traditionally, the relationships between GH and the cardiovascular system have long excited interest. This stems essentially from the clinical and epidemiological notion that patients with acromegaly have increased propensity to develop cardiovascular complications 4, 5). On the other hand, the impaired cardiac performance recently observed in subjects with GH deficiency points to role of GH in cardiac physiology (6–8). Over the past few years, remarkable advancements have been made in understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in GH action, including its effects on cardiac tissue. There is now solid evidence implicating GH and/or its local effector insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) in the intricate cascade of events connected with the regulation of heart development and hypertrophy (9–11).

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