GHRH-arginine test

Your doctor has recommended that you take this test to help with the diagnosis and the management of your condition. Please would you read this carefully and ask us about anything that is not clear or if you would like more information.

This test is used to assess your body’s ability to make growth hormone. In children, growth hormone is important for growth! In young adults, it is important for the maturation of bones and muscles. In older adults, a lack of growth hormone sometimes affects quality of life or mood. NICE (the National Institute of Clinical Excellence) have issued guidelines about GH treatment in all age groups, and specified that it should only be given to patients who meet certain criteria.

The test will take a full morning: you will be free to go home after lunch.

The test will be carried out by the Endocrine Specialist Nurses.

Please have nothing to eat or drink except water for 10 hours before the test. You SHOULD take all your regular tablets and medicines.

You will be given an injection of GHRH. This is a natural hormone (chemical signal) produced by the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus is part of the brain which controls hormone function. GHRH stimulates growth hormone production by the pituitary gland, which is a small gland beneath the brain. You will also be given an injection of arginine, a natural amino acid (the building blocks of proteins) that also stimulates growth hormone release.

We will find out your weight so that we can work out the correct dose of GHRH for you. The nurse will use a needle to insert a small plastic tube into a vein in your arm. We will use this to take blood samples and to give you the injections. After we have taken the first blood samples, we will give you the injection of GHRH, followed by the arginine. This takes about 30 minutes. We measure your response to the test by taking more blood samples over the next two hours.