What growth hormone does.
Growth hormone plays an important part in the complex system of the body.
Hormones are messengers.
Hormones are chemical “messengers” produced in one part of the body that travel to another part of the body to create some sort of change.
Special cells in glands and other organs produce hormones and release them into the body at specific times for specific reasons, depending upon the type of hormone. The hormones’ job is to tell parts of the body to do certain things. They travel through the bloodstream to their “target organ” or tissue, where they exert their effect by giving their instructions.
Growth hormone tells the body to grow.
What is growth hormone? Growth hormone is made in the pituitary gland, which is located at the base of the brain. It does a lot more than just make a child grow taller; it’s responsible for the growth of the body, including organs and bones, and it helps the body’s metabolic processes.
When growth hormone is released from the pituitary gland, it “tells” the liver to release a second hormone, called insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1).
Together, growth hormone and IGF-1 tell the bones, muscles, and other organs and tissues to grow by adding more cells.
What Somatropin 191aa does.
In people with growth hormone deficiency, Somatropin 191aa (somatropin [rDNA origin] injection) replaces the growth hormone that the body isn’t making.
Important Safety Information
Do not use Somatropin 191aa (somatropin [rDNA origin] injection) if: you have a critical illness caused by certain types of heart or stomach surgery, trauma or breathing (respiratory) problems; you are a child with Prader-Willi syndrome who is severely obese or has breathing problems including sleep apnea; you have cancer or other tumors; your healthcare provider tells you that you have certain types of eye problems caused by diabetes; you are a child with closed bone growth plates (epiphyses) or you are allergic to any of the ingredients in the medicine.
Before you take Somatropin 191aa tell your healthcare provider if you: have diabetes; had cancer or any tumor; have any other medical condition; are pregnant or plan to become pregnant; are breast-feeding or plan to breast-feed.
Somatropin 191aa can cause serious side effects, including: high risk of death in people who have critical illnesses because of heart or stomach surgery, trauma or serious breathing (respiratory) problems; high risk of death in children with Prader-Willi syndrome who are severely obese or have breathing problems including sleep apnea; return of tumor or cancerous growths; high blood sugar (hyperglycemia); increase in pressure in the skull (intracranial hypertension); swollen hands and feet due to fluid retention; decrease in thyroid hormone levels; hip and knee pain or a limp in children (slipped capital femoral epiphysis); worsening of pre-existing curvature of the spine (scoliosis); middle ear infection, hearing problems or ear problems in patients with Turner syndrome.
Patients with Noonan syndrome and Turner syndrome should be closely monitored by their doctors as they are more likely to have congenital heart disease.
The most common side effects of Somatropin 191aa include: headaches, muscle pain, joint stiffness, high blood sugar (hyperglycemia), sugar in your urine (glucosuria), swollen hands and feet due to fluid retention, and redness and itching in the area you inject. If you have headaches, eye problems, nausea or vomiting (these may be symptoms of raised pressure in the brain), contact your healthcare provider right away.
Somatropin 191aa may affect how other medicines work, and other medicines may affect how Somatropin 191aa works so be sure to tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take including prescription and non-prescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements.
Especially tell your healthcare provider if you take: glucocorticoid medication, thyroid hormone, insulin or other medicine for diabetes, medicines that are metabolized by the liver (e.g., corticosteroids, sex steroids, anticonvulsants, cyclosporine), or oral estrogen replacement medicine.
Indications and Usage
Somatropin 191aa (somatropin [rDNA origin] injection) is used to treat: children who have growth failure because of low or no growth hormone; children who are short (in stature) and who have Noonan syndrome or Turner syndrome; children who are short (in stature) because they were born small (small for gestational age-SGA) and have not caught-up in growth by age 2 to 4 years; and adults who do not make enough growth hormone.
Talk to your healthcare provider and find out if Somatropin 191aa is right for you or your child.
