P-25: Insulin resistance outcomes following growth hormone therapy in girls with Turner syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis
S Quick Lourenço de Lima, J Bajraktari, N Schettino Samad, A Malaj, F Vasquez, C Armengol Garcia, R Crespo TrevinoAbstract
Introduction
Turner syndrome (TS) is associated with an increased risk of metabolic changes, including insulin resistance and impaired glucose tolerance. Growth hormone therapy (GHT), the standard treatment to improve height, may influence insulin sensitivity and metabolic markers; however, evidence remains limited and inconsistent.
Objectives
Therefore, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to better characterize its metabolic effects in individuals with TS.
Methods
PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library were systematically searched for studies evaluating GHT effects on glucose metabolism in TS. Odds ratios (OR) were pooled for categorical outcomes and mean differences (MD) for continuous outcomes, both with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Statistical analyses were performed using R (version 4.3.1).
Results
We included four studies comprising 359 patients, of whom 166 (46%) received GHT. Compared to no treatment, GHT was associated with a lower occurrence of insulin resistance (OR 0.31; 95% CI 0.13–0.75; p=0.009), lower BMI (MD −1.23 kg/m²; 95% CI −2.40 to −0.06; p=0.04), lower total cholesterol (MD −0.32 mmol/L; 95% CI −0.57 to −0.07; p=0.01), and lower LDL cholesterol (MD −0.32 mmol/L; 95% CI −0.55 to −0.08; p<0.01). No significant differences were observed in fasting insulin, fasting glucose, or HOMA-IR.
Conclusions
GHT appears to be metabolically safe in individuals with TS and may be associated with improvements in insulin resistance, BMI, and LDL cholesterol, although traditional markers such as HOMA-IR were not significantly affected.