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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Journal of Diabetes and Endocrine Practice 2023; 06(03): 142-145
DOI: 10.1055/s-0043-1771500
Case Report

Slipped Capital Femoral Epiphysis after 2 Months from Starting Growth Hormone Therapy

Wasnaa Hadi Abdullah
1   Department of Paediatrics, College of Medicine, Mustansiriyah University, Baghdad, Iraq
,
Hussain Alsaffar 
2   Paediatric Endocrinology Unit, Child Health Department, Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Muscat, Oman
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Abstract

Recombinant growth hormone (GH) is a widely used hormonal therapy for children and adolescents with GH deficiency or short stature related to certain conditions. Generally, GH therapy has a good safety profile; however, it could have rare but significant orthopaedic complications including slipped capital femoral epiphysis (SCFE). Pediatric endocrinologists are aware of these possible complications, and they are responsible for appropriately counseling their patients before commencing this hormone. However, the pediatric endocrinologist may not be the first clinician who encounters the orthopaedic complications of GH, as the patient may seek an emergency medical opinion from people from other specialties. Here, we report the case of a 13-year-old Iraqi adolescent boy who presented with limping that appeared only 2 months after receiving GH (0.035 mg/kg/d). He was diagnosed with SCFE in a relatively very short time after commencement of the treatment. Despite this, the patient was not considered to be at high risk of SCFE. A careful evaluation of SCFE in patients complaining of a limp or hip and knee pain during GH therapy is highly recommended.

Keywords

limping gait - hip joint pain - slipped femoral epiphysis - atraumatic limp - growth hormone therapy - case report

Patients Consent Statement

We would like to thank our patient and his parents for their cooperation with us and for providing consent for publication. Consent was obtained from the father of the patient and assent was also signed by the child.


Compliance with Ethical Principles

No prior approval is required for single case reports.


Data Availability Statement

It will be made available on request.


Authors' Contribution

W.H.A. is the treating physician, who initially drafted the manuscript. H.A. reviewed the manuscript and finalized it. Both authors agreed on the final version.




Publication History

Article published online:
12 September 2023

© 2023. Gulf Association of Endocrinology and Diabetes (GAED). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

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