Is Growth Hormone Insufficiency the Missing Link Between Obesity, Male Gender, Age, and COVID-19 Severity?

Overview

Journal Obesity (Silver Spring)

Specialties Endocrinology
Nutritional Sciences
Physiology

Date 2020 Aug 19

PMID 32808459

Citations 18

Authors

Carla Lubrano

Davide Masi

Renata Risi

Angela Balena

Mikiko Watanabe

Stefania Mariani

Lucio Gnessi

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Evidence has emerged regarding an increased risk of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) with worse prognosis in elderly male patients with obesity, and blunted growth hormone (GH) secretion represents a feature of this population subgroup. Here, a comprehensive review of the possible links between GH-insulinlike growth factor 1 axis impairment and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) severity is offered. First, unequivocal evidence suggests that immune system dysregulation represents a key element in determining SARS-CoV-2 severity, as well as the association with adult-onset GH deficiency (GHD); notably, if GH is physiologically involved in the development and maintenance of the immune system, its pharmacological replacement in GHD patients seems to positively influence their inflammatory status. In addition, the impaired fibrinolysis associated with GHD may represent a further link between GH-insulin-like growth factor 1 axis impairment and COVID-19 severity, as it has been associated with both conditions. In conclusion, several sources of evidence have supported a relationship between GHD and COVID-19, and they also shed light upon potential beneficial effects of recombinant GH treatment on COVID-19 patients.

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