Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Growth hormone response to TRH in dogs with hypothyroidism
By Diaz-Espiñeira, M M et al.·Published in Domestic animal endocrinology·2008·Department of Clinical Sciences of Companion Animals, Netherlands·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Thyrotropin-releasing hormone-induced growth hormone secretion in dogs with primary hypothyroidism.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs with primary hypothyroidism, which can cause symptoms like weight gain, lethargy, and skin issues, were given a hormone called thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) to see how it affected their growth hormone levels. The hypothyroid dogs showed a significant increase in growth hormone after the TRH injection, while healthy dogs did not respond in the same way. This suggests that their bodies are reacting differently due to the thyroid condition. Understanding this response could help veterinarians better manage dogs with hypothyroidism.
People also search for: dog hypothyroidism symptoms · growth hormone in dogs · TRH treatment for dogs
Abstract
Primary hypothyroidism in dogs is associated with increased release of growth hormone (GH). In search for an explanation we investigated the effect of intravenous administration of thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH, 10 microg/kg body weight) on GH release in 10 dogs with primary hypothyroidism and 6 healthy control dogs. The hypothyroid dogs had a medical history and physical changes compatible with hypothyroidism and were included in the study on the basis of the following criteria: plasma thyroxine concentration < 2 nmol/l and plasma thyrotropin (TSH) concentration > 1 microg/l. In addition, (99m)TcO(4)(-) uptake during thyroid scintigraphy was low or absent. TRH administration caused plasma TSH concentrations to rise significantly in the control dogs, but not in the hypothyroid dogs. In the dogs with primary hypothyroidism, the mean basal plasma GH concentration was relatively high (2.3+/-0.5 microg/l) and increased significantly (P=0.001) 10 and 20 min after injection of TRH (to 11.9+/-3.5 and 9.8+/-2.7 microg/l, respectively). In the control dogs, the mean basal plasma GH concentration was 1.3+/-0.1 microg/l and did not increase significantly after TRH administration. We conclude that, in contrast to healthy control dogs, primary hypothyroid dogs respond to TRH administration with a significant increase in the plasma GH concentration, possibly as a result of transdifferentiation of somatotropic pituitary cells to thyrosomatotropes.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17363208/