Before Using This Medicine

In deciding to use a medicine, the risks of taking the medicine must be weighed against the good it will do. This is a decision you and your doctor will make. For growth hormone, the following should be considered:

Allergies—Tell your doctor if you have ever had any unusual or allergic reaction to growth hormone. Also tell your health care professional if you are allergic to any other substances, such as foods, preservatives, or dyes.

Pregnancy—Growth hormone has not been studied in pregnant women. However, in animal studies, growth hormone has not been shown to cause birth defects or other problems.

Breast-feeding—It is not known whether growth hormone passes into breast milk.

Children—There is no specific information comparing use of growth hormone in children with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) with use in other age groups.

Older adults—Many medicines have not been studied specifically in older people. Therefore, it may not be known whether they work exactly the same way they do in younger adults. Although there is no specific information comparing use of growth hormone in the elderly with use in other age groups, it is not expected to cause different side effects or problems in older people than it does in younger adults.

Other medicines—Although certain medicines should not be used together at all, in other cases two different medicines may be used together even if an interaction might occur. In these cases, your doctor may want to change the dose, or other precautions may be necessary. When you are taking growth hormone, it is especially important that your health care professional know if you are taking any of the following:

• Corticosteroids (cortisone-like medicines)—These medicines can interfere with the effects of growth hormone

Other medical problems—The presence of other medical problems may affect the use of growth hormone. Make sure you tell your doctor if you have any other medical problems, especially:

• Brain tumor—Growth hormone should not be used in patients who have a brain tumor that is still growing
• Diabetes mellitus (sugar diabetes)—Growth hormone may prevent insulin from working as well as it should; your doctor may have to change your dose of insulin
• Underactive thyroid—This condition can interfere with the effects of growth hormone