Researchers at British Columbia’s Children’s Hospital (Vancouver, Canada) are
presently investigating whether inhibition of ghrelin by an analogue of
somatostatin could represent a safe and efficient approach to decrease appetite
and weight gain in children and adolescents with Prader Willi syndrome.
Concentrations of ghrelin, a newly-discovered hormone that stimulates appetite,
are high in subjects with PWS. Analogues of somatostatin have been shown to
decrease ghrelin concentrations both in subjects with and without PWS.
The study involves 2 periods of 4 months each, separated by a 6 month “washout
period”. All subjects are receiving, in random order, placebo and somatostatin.
The first subjects who entered the study are presently entering the second
period of the study. The study is blinded and placebo-controlled, meaning that
neither the subject (or his/her family) or the investigator know when placebo or
somatostatin analogue is injected. So far, no serious side-effects were
reported. Analysis of the data will be performed after the last patient has
finished the study. Results will be available in 2006.
edited: 08/19/2008