Combined use of growth hormone and gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues in precocious puberty: theoretic and practical considerations.

The rationale underlying the use of gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues (GnRHa) to treat patients with central precocious puberty is reviewed. GnRHa are now considered the treatment of choice for patients with central precocious puberty, but the adult heights that these patients attain often fall short of what would be expected according to their genetic potential. This has led to investigations of whether adding growth hormone to GnRHa therapy can improve adult height. The results of recent combination trials are presented and analyzed.